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There is no doubt that data breaches are on the rise. Hardly a day goes without headlines about any significant data breach.
According to the latest 'Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2016' report published by UK government, two-thirds of the biggest firm in the UK have experienced at least a cyber attacks or data breaches within the past 12 months.
Here's today, I am writing about top 4 data breaches reported in last 24 hours, threatened your data privacy and online security.
1. Kiddicare Hacked! 794,000 Accounts Leaked
Kiddicare has admitted that the company has suffered a data breach, which led to the theft of sensitive data belonging to 794,000 users, including phone numbers and residential addresses.
Kiddicare, company that sells child toys and accessories across the United Kingdom, became aware of the data breach after its customers started receiving suspicious text messages – most likely part of a phishing campaign – that attempted to pilfer them to click on a link that takes them for an online survey.
Although the company assured its customers that no banking or financial detail have been compromised in the breach, personal information belonging to nearly 794,000 customers, including their names, delivery addresses, email addresses and telephone numbers, have been exposed.
2. UserVoice Hacked! Users' Accounts Breached
Today morning, I received an email from UserVoice, a web-based service that offers customer service and helpdesk tools, notifying that the company suffered a data breach and some user accounts were compromised, including their names, email addresses, and passwords.
The company admitted that user passwords were protected with the SHA1 hashing algorithm, which is considered as a weak encryption.
"Despite the fact that the passwords were encrypted, it is very possible that an attacker can decrypt this information," the company notified. "As a precautionary measure, we have reset all UserVoice passwords to prevent any chance of the attacker gaining further access to accounts."
Some famous companies are using customer service tools from UserVoice, including Twitch, Microsoft and more.
3. Google Suffers Insider Data Breach
Google suffered a minor data breach after a vendor unintentionally leaked sensitive information about its undisclosed number of employees to the wrong email address — but luckily, the person who received it deleted the email straight away.
According to report, the data breach happened after an employee at a third-party company that Google uses for its staff benefit management service mistakenly sent personal data to another company.
Google is still investigating the insider data breach that leaked the personal details of Google employees apparently included Social Security Numbers (SSNs) and names, but no details on benefits or family members.
4. London Clinic fined £180,000 for Leaking HIV Patients Data
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has imposed a £180,000 (about $260,000) fine to a London-based HIV clinic run by Chelsea and Westminster Hospital National Health Service (NHS) Foundation Trust, for leaking data of 781 HIV patients
The clinic mistakenly sent a newsletter email containing sensitive medical information relating to a total 781 HIV patients together rather than individually, using 'bcc' field in the email, leaking their names and email addresses to one another.
"People's use of a specialist service at a sexual health clinic is clearly sensitive personal data," Information Commissioner Christopher Graham said. "The law demands this type of information is handled with particular care following clear rules, and put simply, this did not happen."
The Clinic's medical director said:
"We fully accept the ruling of the ICO for what was a serious breach, and we have worked to ensure that it can never happen again."
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Cyber criminals have exploited the power of two online advertising networks, Google's DoubleClick and popular Zedo advertising agency, to deliver malicious advertisements to millions of internet users that could install malware on a user's computer.
A recent report published by the researcher of the security vendor Malwarebytes suggests that the cyber criminals are exploiting a number of websites, including The Times of Israel, The Jerusalem Post and the Last.fm music streaming website, to serve malicious advertisements designed to spread the recently identified Zemot malware.
Malvertising is not any new tactic used by cybercriminals, but Jerome Segura, a senior security researcher with Malwarebytes, wrote in a blog post that his company "rarely see attacks on a large scale like this."
"It was active but not too visible for a number of weeks until we started seeing popular sites getting flagged in our honeypots," Segura wrote. "That's when we thought, something is going on."
The first impressions came in late August, and by now millions of computers have likely been exposed to Zemot, although only those with outdated antivirus protection were actually infected.
According to Segura, the malicious advertisements lead users to websites containing Nuclear exploit kit, which looks for an unpatched version of Adobe Flash Player or Internet Explorer running on victim's system. If found one, it downloads the Zemot malware, which then communicate it to a remote server and downloads a wave of other malicious applications.
However, by the time the malware was spotted, millions of computer machines may already have been exposed to Zemot, the researcher said, but at the mean time he also added that only those users with out-of-date antivirus software protection were actually infected by the malware.
The Zemot malware was identified by Microsoft earlier this month. According to Microsoft, Zemot is usually distributed not only by the Nuclear exploit kit but also by the Magnitude exploit kit and spambot malware Kuluoz. The malware focuses on computers running Windows XP, although it can also infect more modern operating systems running on x86 and 64 bit machines.
The malware can easily bypass the security softwares installed in the system before infecting computers with additional malware, therefore it is difficult to identify the attack it poses on a system.
A Google representative has confirmed the breach, and said that the team was aware of the breach and has since shut down all the affected servers which were redirecting malicious code, and have disabled the ads that delivered malware to user's computers, reported The Verge.
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Salisbury, England (CNN)Welcome to the city of Salisbury, where local market traders sell fresh organic vegetables, amid nervous talk of chemical weapons, and men in protective suits and gas masks walk in and out of the local pub. It wasn't always like this, of course. But in the wake of the attempted murder last week of former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia, life in this city of 45,000 has taken on a surreal, and some say uncomfortable edge. For Danny Styles, a fruit and vegetable seller, whose stall is located just steps from where the Skripals were found poisoned by a military-grade nerve agent, the prospect of unknowingly coming into contact with the substance has left him with a feeling of powerlessness. "I think the fact a nerve agent was used is scaring people," Styles says, between bagging up groceries. "No one can really do much about it. If you do end up consuming it [the nerve agent], people are concerned they could be at risk of dying."Danny Styles, outside his market stall in the center of Salisbury. Read MoreLethal nerve agentThat risk was made all the more apparent with the declaration late last week, that hundreds of local people could be affected, after traces of the nerve agent -- since identified as the highly lethal Novichok -- were detected in the Salisbury branch of Italian restaurant Zizzi and the popular Mill pub. Military personnel in protective suits remove a police car and other vehicles from a public park park as they investigate the poisoning of Sergei Skripal on March 11 in Salisbury, England. So far, any serious ill-effects appear limited to those who directly encountered the substance, including first responder Detective Sgt. Nick Bailey, who remains hospitalized in serious condition. Skripal, and his daughter Yulia, also remain hospitalized in critical condition.However, on Friday, an additional 180 specialist military personnel were deployed to the city to help police investigate and prevent further potential contamination.This was followed by the removal of the restaurant table where the pair ate on the day of attack for examination. Restaurant employees and diners were also advised to wash their clothes.For local resident Geoffrey Bennetts the government's latest advice is a case of too little, too late. "We're not getting much information," says Bennetts. "How can you ask people to wash their clothes a week after. They probably don't remember what they even wore. Its extraordinary."JUST WATCHEDWhat is Novichok and how does it kill?ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHWhat is Novichok and how does it kill? 01:34Life goes onBut despite the obvious changes to their city, residents continue to go about their daily lives as best they can.Matthew Dean, leader of the city's local council, said people viewed the arrival of additional military personnel with a mix of nonchalance and trepidation. "There has been a nervousness about the large police and armed force presence, but Salisbury is very resilient," said Dean. "We're fortunate that we are home to British Army so we are used to seeing armed forces going about their business."A Salisbury shop is closed for business as a result of the ongoing police investigation.Even before the attack, the UK's Ministry of Defense was an ever present part of life in the city, with tanks and troop carriers thundering back and forth across nearby Salisbury Plain, one of the country's largest and oldest military training sites. Salisbury is also close to the world renowned Porton Down chemical weapons laboratory, a military research facility that specializes in testing chemicals used in war. There, experts are currently looking at samples of the substance that poisoned Skripal and his daughter. At a women's 70-plus fitness class, local resident Judy Stefford says she has lived through harder times, but chemical weapons and secret agents are far from what she expects in her hometown. "Nobody thinks anything happens in Salisbury. It's just a little urban place isn't it really."That may change after UK Prime Minister Theresa May linked the attack to Russia Monday. On Tuesday, she announced the UK would expel 23 Russian diplomats and suspend high-level contacts between the two countries in the wake of the incident. According to May, the attack put the city's residents in harms way and may amount to an "unlawful use of force" on the city.Investigators in protective clothing remove a van from an address in Winterslow near Salisbury.Support ongoingBack at the market, Styles says the incident is beginning to impact the market "massively" due to a drop in footfall. The city, says Styles, has gone eerily quiet. "We are struggling badly, we've hardly got any customers or people walking through here let alone buying stuff."A police line warns resident against entering into an area of ongoing investigation. Opposite the restaurant where the Skripals are believed to have eaten on the day of the attack, coffee shop owner Lydia Williams confirms that local residents are choosing to stay away from the city center."I think locals don't want to walk around, as it is so busy with so much activity from authorities," says Williams, who admits her own business has yet to be affected thanks in part to the sudden arrival of the international press. For Salisbury native and tour guide Lorna Matthews-Keel recent developments are just another part of the medieval city's long and colorful history. "I think we're aware that a profound thing has happened. But I also think we're aware that history is in the making all the time," she says, pointing to the fact that Salisbury is home to one of four remaining copies of the original Magna Carta. "We will now always in our history be connected to a Russian spy," said Matthews-Keel. CNN's Steve George in Hong Kong contributed to this report
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In Brief
Microsoft has issued its first Patch Tuesday for 2017, and it's one of the smallest ever monthly patch releases for the company, with only four security updates to address vulnerabilities in its Windows operating system as well as Adobe Flash Player.
Meanwhile, Adobe has also released patches for more than three dozen security vulnerabilities in its Flash Player and Acrobat/Reader for Windows, MacOS, and Linux desktops.
According to the Microsoft Advisory, only one security bulletin is rated critical, while other three are important. The bulletins address security vulnerabilities in Microsoft's Windows, Windows Server, Office, Edge and Flash Player.
The only security bulletin rated as critical is the one dedicated to Adobe Flash Player, for which Microsoft distributed security patches through Windows Update. Other security bulletins that addresses flaws in Microsoft products are as follows:
Bulletin 1 — MS17-001
This security update resolves just one vulnerability in the Microsoft Edge browser. Microsoft rates this bulletin as important.
The vulnerability (CVE-2017-0002) could let an attacker gain elevated access privileges by tricking users to view a specially crafted web page using Microsoft Edge.
This elevation of privilege flaw exists in Microsoft Edge's cross-domain policies, which could allow "an attacker to access information from one domain and inject it into another domain," Microsoft says.
The update will be rolled out to Windows 10 and Server 2016.
Bulletin 2 — MS17-002
This security bulletin is the one that also patches a single vulnerability in Microsoft Office.
The vulnerability, designated CVE-2017-0003, is a memory corruption issue that allows an attacker to perform remote code execution (RCE) in Microsoft Office 2016 and SharePoint Enterprise Server 2016.
The flaw lets a specially crafted Word file to take control of the target machine with the current user's access privileges.
Users who are logged in with fewer user rights on the system are less impacted than users who operate with administrative user rights, such as some home accounts and server users.
Bulletin 3 — MS17-003
This security bulletin is rated as Critical and resolves 12 security vulnerabilities in Adobe Flash Player for all supported editions of Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012, Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows RT 8.1, Windows 10, and Windows Server 2016.
The security patch will be automatically rolled out to Windows users running Microsoft Edge or Internet Explorer 11.
Bulletin 4 — MS17-004
This security update, also rated as important, addresses just one denial of service (DoS) vulnerability in Local Security Authority Subsystem Service (LSASS) for Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows Server 2008, and Windows Server 2008 R2.
The flaw (CVE-2017-0004) resides in the LSASS that handles authentication requests, which could be exploited to reboot the system by sending a specially crafted authentication request to the targeted system or server.
Adobe Security Patch Update
A total of 13 vulnerabilities has been addressed in the Flash Player, while none of the flaws have actively been exploited in the wild.
The Flash Player updates for both Windows and macOS systems have been rated critical, as successful exploitation of the vulnerability could let an attacker perform remote code execution on the target system. However, Linux users are at lower risk for attack.
The update for Adobe Acrobat and Reader addresses some 29 flaws, including some remote code execution (RCE) vulnerabilities in both Windows and macOS.
Users and IT administrators are strongly recommended to apply Windows and Adobe patches as soon as possible in order to keep away hackers and cybercriminals from taking control over your computer.
A system reboot is necessary for installing updates, so users are advised to save work on PCs where the whole package of patches is deployed before initiating the process.
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Story highlightsThe No.3 seed beats Czech Republic's Tomas Berdych in four sets Olympic champion Murray through to his second U.S. Open final Scot will play either Novak Djokovic or Spain's David Ferrer in the final Scotland's Andy Murray is through to his second U.S. Open final after beating Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic in four sets at a windswept Arthur Ashe Stadium on Saturday. The No.3 seed rallied after losing the opening set to eventually overrun the Czech 5-7 6-2 6-1 7-6 (8-6) in three hours 58 minutes.Both players struggled with the windy conditions on court which delayed and disrupted points throughout the match."It's hard to describe. You have to focus for every single point and you had to get yourself in the right position for every single shot ..." Murray said after the match. "It's the hardest conditions I've ever played in for sure. And I come from Scotland, so that's saying something," he added.Murray was the first to seize the initiative, breaking Berdych in the third game of the match. But the Czech broke back immediately to level the score at two games all as the wind intervened for the first time in the match.JUST WATCHEDJim Courier's U.S. Open tipsReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHJim Courier's U.S. Open tips 04:05Serving at 30-40 down, Murray looked to have won the point, executing a delicate drop shot to leave Berdych scrambling in vain towards the net. But the Scot's cap blew off before the ball was dead and the Czech requested they replay the point. JUST WATCHEDCan Murray win first tennis grand slam?ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHCan Murray win first tennis grand slam? 02:09After a brief but lively discussion, Murray agreed. But the Scot was clearly unsettled. The point proved a precursor to some erratic form which initially saw Murray surrender the game with a wayward lob, and eventually the set as Berdych broke for a second time in the 12th game. Murray regrouped quickly, breaking Berdych in the first game of the second set which he went on to dominate. The wind played havoc with both player's games throughout and visibly intervened again as Murray served for the second set, blowing chairs and his kit bag onto court. Storm threat delays women's finalBut this time, the Scot was unruffled by the delay and leveled the match without alarm.Murray broke again at the start of the third set in which he assumed full control of the match running Berdych ragged at times. Some powerful hitting by Berdych in the fourth set ensured Murray didn't coast home. The Czech took the set to a tiebreak and led it 5-2 at one point, but Murray clawed his way back to parity and then manufactured two match points. The first went begging, but he took the second as Berdych swept a forehand long to hand Murray a fifth Grand Slam final appearance and his second at Flushing Meadows. The Scot will have to overcome either Serbia's Novak Djokovic or David Ferrer of Spain in the final to claim his first Grand Slam title. Ferrer was leading Djokovic 5-2 in the first set of their semifinal when officials suspended play for the day because of the threat of severe weather. The match is scheduled to resume at 11a.m. ET on Sunday. Saturday's disruption also means the final will now be played on a Monday for a fifth year in succession.
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If you receive a mail masquerading as a company's invoice and containing a Microsoft Word file, think twice before clicking on it.
Doing so could cripple your system and could lead to a catastrophic destruction.
Hackers are believed to be carrying out social engineering hoaxes by adopting eye-catching subjects in the spam emails and compromised websites to lure the victims into installing a deadly ransomware, dubbed "Locky," into their systems.
So if you find .locky extension files on your network shares, Congratulations! You are infected and left with just two solutions: Rebuild your PC from scratch or Pay the ransom.
Locky ransomware is spreading at the rate of 4000 new infections per hour, which means approximately 100,000 new infections per day.
Microsoft MACROS are Back
It is hard to digest the fact that, in this 2016, even a single MS Word document could compromise your system by enabling 'Macros.'
This is where the point to appreciate hacker's sheer brilliance of tactics.
Locky ransomware is being distributed via Microsoft 365 or Outlook in the form of an Invoice email attachment (Word File that embeds vicious macro functions).
The concept of macros dates back to 1990s. You must be familiar with this message: "Warning: This document contains macros."
Now macros are back, as cyber criminals discover a new way to get internet users to open Microsoft Office documents, especially Word files that allow macros to run automatically.
How Does Locky Work?
Once a user opens a malicious Word document, the doc file gets downloaded to its system. However, danger comes in when the user opens the file and found the content scrambled and a popup that states "enable macros".
Here comes the bad part:
Once the victim enables the macro (malicious), he/she would download an executable from a remote server and run it.
This executable is nothing but the Locky Ransomware that, when started, will begin to encrypt all the files on your computer as well as network.
Locky ransomware affects nearly all file formats and encrypts all the files and replace the filename with .locky extension.
Once encrypted, the ransomware malware displays a message that instructs infected victims to download TOR and visit the attacker's website for further instructions and payments.
Locky ransomware asks victims to pay between 0.5 and 2 Bitcoins ($208 to $800) in order to get the decryption key.
One of the interesting note on Locky is that it is being translated into many languages, which heighten its attack beyond English boundaries to maximize the digital casualties.
Locky Encrypts Even Your Network-Based Backup Files
The new ransomware also has the capability to encrypt your network-based backup files. So it's time for you to keep you sensitive and important files in a third party storage as a backup plan in order to evade future-ransomware infections.
A researcher named Kevin Beaumont initially discovered the existence of Locky encrypted virus.
To check the impact of Locky, Kevin successfully intercepted the Locky traffic yesterday and realized that the cryptovirus is spreading out rapidly in the wild.
"I estimate by the end of the day well over 100,000 new endpoints will be infected with Locky, making this a genuine major cybersecurity incident — 3 days in, approximately a quarter of Million PCs will be infected," Kevin said in a blog post.
One hour of infection Statistics:
Among the highly impacted countries include Germany, Netherlands, United States, Croatia, Mali, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Poland, Argentina and Serbia.
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Story highlightsArgentine prosecutor Alberto Nisman dies mysteriously while investigating 1994 attackSuspicions arose that death was tied to allegations against Argentine's President, other leaders (CNN)Everyone agrees -- the mysterious death of Argentine prosecutor Alberto Nisman has all the twists of a thriller. But what exactly does that mean? A number of people have been pulled into the unfolding story of the prosecutor's death. Nisman, a special prosecutor investigating a deadly 1994 terror attack, alleged that the country's President, foreign minister and other political leaders covered up Iranian involvement in the attack. The government told Iran it would back off in exchange for a favorable trade deal, Nisman alleged. He filed his report, but one day before his scheduled testimony before lawmakers on the allegations, he was found dead from a gunshot wound to the head. There were initial reports of suicide, but many had their doubts. Sure enough, suspicions appeared to be confirmed when no gunpowder residue was found on Nisman's hands, which would have been expected if he had shot himself. Read MoreSince then, a number of strange things have happened in Argentina, all seemingly related to Nisman's death. Here's a look at the people, events and places that form part of a web that continues to unspool:Argentine Israelite Mutual Association, or AMIAJUST WATCHEDArgentina's Jewish community in despairReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHArgentina's Jewish community in despair 02:16The Argentine Israelite Mutual Association, or AMIA, was the target of the July 18, 1994, terror attack that killed 85 people and injured hundreds in Buenos Aires. The attack on the Jewish community center is the worst terror attack in Argentina's history. A suicide attacker drove an explosive-laden vehicle into the building. Argentina has the largest Jewish community in Latin America.Alberto NismanHe was the prosecutor who accused Argentina's President and other top leaders of covering up Iran's alleged role in the Jewish center bombing. Nisman was found dead after filing a report with his allegations in court, and one day before he was slated to testify on his accusations in front of Congress. JUST WATCHEDControversy surrounds prosecutor's mysterious deathReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHControversy surrounds prosecutor's mysterious death 08:05His death remains a mystery. A gun and shell casing by his side made it look like a suicide, but an initial test found no gunpowder residue on his hands. Almost immediately, suspicions arose that Nisman's death was linked to his allegations against the President, foreign minister and other political elites. President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner called it a suicide, then quickly changed her tune. The government denies it had a role in the prosecutor's death. Nisman was appointed as special prosecutor on the AMIA bombing in 2005 by then-President Nestor Kirchner, Fernandez's late husband. Iranian suspectsEven before Nisman became the lead investigator, previous Argentine prosecutors suspected Iran's involvement in the terrorist attack. In 2004, Argentina issued arrest warrants for 12 Iranians and requested that Interpol issue red notices for these suspects. But allegations of misconduct by Argentine investigators resulted in the case falling apart. Nisman was appointed after this mess to sort it out. JUST WATCHED'Nisman is here': Argentine prosecutor laid to restReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCH'Nisman is here': Argentine prosecutor laid to rest 01:31Nisman's own investigation also pointed at Iran, and in 2007, Argentina issued new arrest warrants and went back to Interpol. This time six red notices were issued. The Iranian suspects are Imad Fayez Moughnieh, Ali Fallahijan, Mohsen Rabbani, Ahmad Reza Asghari, Ahmad Vahidi and Mohsen Rezai. The most prominent of these suspects is Vahidi, who for a time was Iran's defense minister. Argentina also asked for red notices for three others -- former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, former Foreign Affairs Minister Ali Akbar Velayati and Hadi Soleimanpour, the former ambassador of Iran in Buenos Aires. Interpol did not issue red notices for them. None of the Iranian suspects are in custody and Iran has not made them available to Argentine prosecutors. Joint Argentina-Iran commissionIn 2013, Argentina's Congress approved the creation of a joint commission to investigate the 1994 AMIA bombing. The five-member "truth commission" would include Argentine and Iranian investigators who would work together to get to the bottom of the terror attack. Argentine lawmakers deliberated for more than 14 hours before passing the measure by a 131-113 vote. Later, Nisman would call this agreement the public face of the alleged cover-up. Fernandez's government heralded the agreement as a way for prosecutors to finally interrogate the Iranian suspects. But there was much opposition, including from Jewish groups. They were worried the commission's verdict would be nonbinding and distrusted Iran. JUST WATCHEDDid Argentina make a secret deal with Iran?ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHDid Argentina make a secret deal with Iran? 02:49Cristina Fernandez de KirchnerFernandez was elected President of Argentina in 2007. She succeeded her husband, Nestor Kirchner, who was President from 2003-2007 and who died in 2010. Fernandez was re-elected in December 2011 to a new four-year term. As President, she has often been combative, accusing opponents of undermining her ability to govern. When Nisman was found dead, she made a statement calling it a suicide, followed by a second statement saying she didn't believe he took his own life.In the wake of the Nisman scandal, Fernandez traveled to China on a business trip, where she made headlines for a tweet mocking the Chinese accent. Hector TimermanHector Timerman, Argentina's foreign minister, is among those accused of conspiring to cover up Iran's involvement in the Jewish center bombing. After Nisman's death, Timerman told CNN the allegations of a cover-up were baseless.Argentine Foreign Minister Hector Timerman says allegations of a cover-up are "baseless."Fernandez's government has done more than any previous administration to get to the bottom of the bombing, Timerman said."I am Jewish," he said. "And to think that a person of my religion, the Jewish religion, can make a deal not to prosecute the death of 85 people, most of them Jewish in Argentina ... I have to tell you, it's not easy to live with."He has said that he never asked to have the red notices for the Iranian suspects removed. His reputation has taken a hit. Timerman signed the agreement with the Iranians to investigate the bombing jointly, a move criticized by Argentina's Jewish community. At the time, he said: "I negotiated this memorandum with who I had to, not with who I wanted to. At each step, I kept in mind that us Argentinians learned with lots of pain that we have to seek justice and not condemnations, to seek the truth and not vengeance."Diego Lagomarsino Diego Lagomarsino was an assistant to Nisman. He also is the only person charged in connection with the prosecutor's death, charged with illegally letting Nisman borrow a gun. Lagomarsino faces up to six years in prison if convicted.The IT expert broke his silence at a news conference, saying he committed no crime and that he let Nisman borrow the gun at the prosecutor's insistence.Nisman feared for his safety after he filed his report in court and didn't trust his own security guards, Lagomarsino said.According to Lagomarsino, Nisman was so fearful that he didn't go out to buy his own groceries and feared for his daughters. Nisman told Lagomarsino not to worry, that he wasn't going to use the gun. But when Lagomarsino texted later to check on Nisman, the prosecutor never answered. Viviana FeinViviana Fein is a federal prosecutor who leads the investigation into Nisman's death. It's not unusual for her, or those she interviews, to be swarmed by television news cameras outside her office. Fein's approach to the investigation has been careful and transparent. She provides occasional statements with updates on whom she has spoken with and what tests are being conducted on the evidence. JUST WATCHEDSlain prosecutor drafted warrant to arrest PresidentReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHSlain prosecutor drafted warrant to arrest President 02:05However, she made missteps that have damaged her credibility in the eyes of some. When the Clarin newspaper reported that Nisman had drafted an arrest warrant affidavit for Fernandez, Timerman and others, Fein was quoted saying it was not true. The government also denied it. The next day, Fein said her comments were misunderstood. She confirmed that Nisman had indeed contemplated seeking the arrests of the President and others. The draft documents were found in trash can in Nisman's apartment, she said. SI, or ex-SIDEThe Secretariat of Intelligence, or SI, is the country's domestic intelligence service. Locally, it is also known as ex-SIDE, referring to the agency's previous name, the Intelligence Secretariat of the State (SIDE by its Spanish initials). In the wake of Nisman's death, the government has suggested that rogue intelligence agents fed Nisman false information about a cover-up and then killed him after he filed the accusations in court. "They used him while he was alive, and then they needed him dead," the President said in a statement days after Nisman's body was found. Fernandez then sent a bill to Congress that would abolish the SI and replace it with a new agency, to be called the Federal Intelligence Agency. The SI has "not served the interests of the country," Fernandez said. Lawmakers are debating the proposal. JUST WATCHEDArgentina leader wants shake-up after scandalReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHArgentina leader wants shake-up after scandal 03:08Horacio Antonio 'Jaime' Stiuso Horacio Antonio Stiuso is his full name, but he is known by his nickname, "Jaime." He is a key witness, but he seems to have disappeared.When Fernandez refers to a rogue intelligence officer who fed false information to Nisman, she is talking about Stiuso. Stiuso led the SI until Fernandez booted him last year. The former spy chief allegedly retaliated by tricking Nisman into accusing the government of a criminal cover-up, Fernandez and her supporters claim. Fernandez moved to relieve Stiuso of his obligation to keep secrets, so that he can testify. Stiuso was slated to testify during the first week of February but couldn't be found. Fein has since said she is confident he will testify soon. Damian PachterDamian Pachter is a journalist for the English-language Buenos Aires Herald. A dual citizen of Argentina and Israel, he broke the news of Nisman's death, reporting it via Twitter. After the scoop, Pachter dropped off the radar, with some saying he fled Argentina fearing for his safety. In a strange response, the Argentine government published a copy of Pachter's travel records, saying they showed he simply went to Uruguay and had purchased a return ticket. But Pachter didn't return. He announced on Twitter a few days later that he was in Israel, in exile. When a trusted source provides an unexpected scoop http://t.co/tyi9R8rKap by @BAHeraldcom's @damianpachter on how he broke the #Nisman story— Buenos Aires Herald (@BAHeraldcom) January 20, 2015
Sergio BerniSergio Berni is Argentina's security secretary. His tie-in to this mystery? Local media widely reported that he arrived at Nisman's apartment, with Nisman's mother, before investigators arrived. He also was the first person to publicly call Nisman's death a suicide. Not surprisingly, questions have swirled about what a government minister was doing at the scene before the investigators, and why he announced the suicide theory so quickly.
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(CNN)NFL officials were notified by Las Vegas police just before the Pro Bowl that New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara was a suspect in a battery investigation, but officers said they would question him after the game, Commissioner Roger Goodell said Wednesday.Kamara played in the Pro Bowl on Sunday and was interviewed, then arrested at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas after the game in connection with an incident that occurred early Saturday. Police have said a man reported being a victim of battery at a local nightclub.Kamara was charged with battery resulting in substantial bodily harm and posted bail on Monday, according to a court docket. "Our security team was contacted by the police in Las Vegas just prior to the game saying they would like to meet with Alvin after the game and our team made sure that that happened so our security team did what they were asked to do and accommodated them," Goodell told reporters at a wide-ranging Super Bowl news conference.Read MoreOn Monday, Clark County Assistant Sheriff John McGrath told the Nevada Current, an online news site, that police contacted NFL security officials at 10 a.m. PT to tell them Kamara was a suspect."They located him, and he was already on the field," McGrath said. In a statement to CNN, Kamara's attorney's said the five-time Pro Bowler "has gained a well-deserved reputation for being a hard-working and community minded individual." "The recent Las Vegas allegations are not consistent with who Mr. Kamara has shown himself to be in both his public and private life. Therefore, we are conducting our own investigation into all of the circumstances and individuals associated with this matter to determine both the facts and motivations of all involved." New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara arrested on battery charge in Las Vegas after playing in Pro BowlAccording to an arrest report from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, Kamara punched a man "approximately 8 times" at a night club the day before appearing in the league's all-star game. Kamara told police that he and his friends were waiting by an elevator early Saturday when a man approached them and called one of his friends "ugly," the arrest report states. The man, according to Kamara, also said, "'I'll whoop your ass too,'" the report states. The man ended up "being attacked by a total of four suspects" from Kamara's group, according to surveillance video viewed by police from the night club, the report says. Police spoke to the man who approached Kamara's group of friends at the hospital and found that he suffered "an orbital fracture on his right eye," the report says. The man told police that when he tried to approach the elevator, Kamara placed his hand on his chest and the man pushed it off, the report states. The man told police that Kamara then pushed him so hard that he stumbled back, according to the report. Kamara said he saw a fight break out next to him involving the man and "threw in a couple of punches" when he thought the man who approached them started running away, according to police. "The video disputes this," the report said. The man, "was not running away, but had in fact, just been punched by Kamara's associate and then Kamara immediately attacked him," the report says. Police have not released the surveillance video. Kamara's first hearing is scheduled for March 8 at 8:30 a.m. PT, according to CNN affiliate KTNV. CNN's Homero De la Fuente contributed to this report.
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Another day, another creepy malware for Android users!
Security Researchers have uncovered a new Android malware targeting your devices, but this time instead of attacking the device directly, the malware takes control over the WiFi router to which your device is connected to and then hijacks the web traffic passing through it.
Dubbed "Switcher," the new Android malware, discovered by researchers at Kaspersky Lab, hacks the wireless routers and changes their DNS settings to redirect traffic to malicious websites.
Over a week ago, Proofpoint researchers discovered similar attack targeting PCs, but instead of infecting the target's machines, the Stegano exploit kit takes control over the local WiFi routers the infected device is connected to.
Switcher Malware carries out Brute-Force attack against Routers
Hackers are currently distributing the Switcher trojan by disguising itself as an Android app for the Chinese search engine Baidu (com.baidu.com), and as a Chinese app for sharing public and private Wi-Fi network details (com.snda.wifilocating).
Once victim installs one of these malicious apps, the Switcher malware attempts to log in to the WiFi router the victim's Android device is connected to by carrying out a brute-force attack on the router's admin web interface with a set of a predefined dictionary (list) of usernames and passwords.
"With the help of JavaScript [Switcher] tries to login using different combinations of logins and passwords," mobile security expert Nikita Buchka of Kaspersky Lab says in a blog post published today.
"Judging by the hard coded names of input fields and the structures of the HTML documents that the trojan tries to access, the JavaScript code used will work only on web interfaces of TP-LINK Wi-Fi routers."
Switcher Malware Infects Routers via DNS Hijacking
Once accessed web administration interface, the Switcher trojan replaces the router's primary and secondary DNS servers with IP addresses pointing to malicious DNS servers controlled by the attackers.
Researchers said Switcher had used three different IP addresses – 101.200.147.153, 112.33.13.11 and 120.76.249.59 – as the primary DNS record, one is the default one while the other two are set for specific internet service providers.
Due to change in router's DNS settings, all the traffic gets redirected to malicious websites hosted on attackers own servers, instead of the legitimate site the victim is trying to access.
"The Trojan targets the entire network, exposing all its users, whether individuals or businesses, to a wide range of attacks – from phishing to secondary infection," the post reads.
"A successful attack can be hard to detect and even harder to shift: the new settings can survive a router reboot, and even if the rogue DNS is disabled, the secondary DNS server is on hand to carry on."
Researchers were able to access the attacker's command and control servers and found that the Switcher malware Trojan has compromised almost 1,300 routers, mainly in China and hijacked traffic within those networks.
The Bottom Line
Android users are required to download applications only from official Google's Play Store.
While downloading apps from third parties do not always end up with malware or viruses, it certainly ups the risk. So, it is the best way to avoid any malware compromising your device and the networks it accesses.
You can also go to Settings → Security and make sure "Unknown sources" option is turned off.
Moreover, Android users should also change their router's default login and passwords so that nasty malware like Switcher or Mirai, can not compromise their routers using a brute-force attack.
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Yesterday, on the 3rd anniversary of the infamous global WannaCry ransomware outbreak for which North Korea was blamed, the U.S. government released information about three new malware strains used by state-sponsored North Korean hackers.
Called COPPERHEDGE, TAINTEDSCRIBE, and PEBBLEDASH, the malware variants are capable of remote reconnaissance and exfiltration of sensitive information from target systems, according to a joint advisory released by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Department of Defense (DoD).
The three new malware strains are the latest addition to a long list of over 20 malware samples, including BISTROMATH, SLICKSHOES, HOPLIGHT, and ELECTRICFISH, among others, that have been identified by the security agencies as originating as part of a series of malicious cyber activity by the North Korean government it calls Hidden Cobra, or widely known by the moniker Lazarus Group.
Full-Featured Trojans
COPPERHEDGE, the first of the three new variants, is a full-featured Remote Access Tool (RAT) capable of running arbitrary commands, performing system reconnaissance, and exfiltrating data. It's being used by advanced threat actors to target cryptocurrency exchanges and related entities. Six different versions of COPPERHEDGE have been identified.
TAINTEDSCRIBE functions as a backdoor implant that masquerades itself as Microsoft's Narrator screen reader utility to download malicious payloads from a command-and-control (C2) server, upload, and execute files, and even create and terminate processes.
Lastly, PEBBLEDASH, like TAINTEDSCRIBE, is another trojan with capabilities to "download, upload, delete, and execute files; enable Windows CLI access; create and terminate processes; perform target system enumeration."
A significant Cyber Espionage Threat
The WannaCry ransomware infection of 2017, also known as Wanna Decryptor, leveraged a Windows SMB exploit, dubbed EternalBlue, that allowed a remote hacker to hijack unpatched Windows computers in return for Bitcoin payments of up to $600. The attack has since been traced to Hidden Cobra.
With the Lazarus Group responsible for the theft of more than $571 million worth of cryptocurrency from online exchanges, the financially-motivated attacks led the US Treasury to sanction the group and its two off-shoots, Bluenoroff and Andariel, last September.
Then earlier this March, the US Department of Justice (DoJ) charged two Chinese nationals working on behalf of the North Korean threat actors to allegedly launder over $100 million worth of the stolen cryptocurrency using prepaid Apple iTunes gift cards.
Last month, the US government had issued guidance on the 'significant cyber threat' posed by North Korean state-sponsored hackers to the global banking and financial institutions, in addition to offering a monetary reward of up to $5 million for information about past or ongoing illicit DPRK activities in the cyber realm.
"The DPRK's malicious cyber activities threaten the United States and the broader international community and, in particular, pose a significant threat to the integrity and stability of the international financial system," the advisory cautioned.
"Under the pressure of robust US and UN sanctions, the DPRK has increasingly relied on illicit activities – including cybercrime – to generate revenue for its weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs."
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Oh Microsoft, How could you do this to your own Internet Explorer? Microsoft had kept hidden a critical Zero-Day vulnerability of Internet explorer 8 from all of us, since October 2013.
A Critical zero-day Internet Explorer vulnerability (CVE-2014-1770), which was discovered by Peter 'corelanc0d3r' Van Eeckhoutte in October 2013 just goes public today by the Zero Day Initiative (ZDI) website.
Zero Day Initiative is a program for rewarding security researchers for responsibly disclosing vulnerabilities. ZDI reportedly disclosed the vulnerability to Microsoft when it was first identified by one of its researchers, on which Microsoft responded 4 month later on February 2014 and confirmed the flaw, but neither the Microsoft patch the vulnerability nor it disclosed any details about it.
But due to ZDI's 180 days public notification policy, they are obligated to publicly disclosed the details of a Zero-Day vulnerability. ZDI warned Microsoft several days ago about the pending public disclosure of the flaw after it completed 180 days as on April, but apparently Microsoft didn't respond to it.
According to the ZDI Security Advisory, the vulnerability is a zero day remote code execution flaw that affects the Internet Explorer version 8 and allows a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code through a bug in CMarkup objects.
In a web-based attack scenario, an attacker could leverage the Vulnerability through compromise websites and by clicking on email attachments. To perform successful web-based attacks, an attacker can host specially crafted content on the compromised websites that could trigger the reported vulnerability.
"In all cases, however, an attacker would have no way to force users to view the attacker-controlled content. Instead, an attacker would have to convince users to take action, typically by getting them to click a link in an email message or in an Instant Messenger message that takes users to the attacker's website, or by getting them to open an attachment sent through email," reads the ZDI post.
By successful exploitation of the flaw, an attacker could gain the same user rights as the current user on the compromised system and victim 'users whose accounts are configured to have fewer user rights on the system could be less impacted than users who operate with administrative user rights.'
If you are using Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Outlook Express, or Windows Mail to open HTML emails, then it automatically disables the Script and ActiveX controls, that helps reduce the risk of an attacker being able to use these vulnerabilities to execute malicious code.
But once the user clicks any malicious link attached with the email messages, he or she would fall victim for the exploitation of these vulnerabilities through the web-based attacks.
Moreover, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2012, and Windows Server 2012 R2 users should not worry if they have Enhanced Security Configuration enabled on their Internet Explorer, because this mode mitigates these vulnerabilities.
The vulnerability has not been addressed by Microsoft and no patch is available yet for this critical zero day vulnerability, so Internet Explorer user are still vulnerable to the zero-day attack.
You are advised to block ActiveX Controls and Active Scripting and also install EMET (Enhanced Mitigation Experience Toolkit), that enable you to manage security mitigation technologies that help make it more difficult for attackers to exploit vulnerabilities in a given piece of software.
Just few days back, a similar remote code execution vulnerability in the Internet Explorer that affected almost all the versions of IE was reported by the security firm FireEye.
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A new set of critical vulnerabilities has been disclosed in the Realtek RTL8170C Wi-Fi module that an adversary could abuse to gain elevated privileges on a device and hijack wireless communications.
"Successful exploitation would lead to complete control of the Wi-Fi module and potential root access on the OS (such as Linux or Android) of the embedded device that uses this module," researchers from Israeli IoT security firm Vdoo said in a write-up published yesterday.
The Realtek RTL8710C Wi-Fi SoC underpins Ameba, an Arduino-compatible programmable platform equipped with peripheral interfaces for building a variety of IoT applications by devices spanning across agriculture, automotive, energy, healthcare, industrial, security, and smart home sectors.
The flaws affect all embedded and IoT devices that use the component to connect to Wi-Fi networks and would require an attacker to be on the same Wi-Fi network as the devices that use the RTL8710C module or know the network's pre-shared key (PSK), which, as the name implies, is a cryptographic secret used to authenticate wireless clients on local area networks.
The findings follow an earlier analysis in February that found similar weaknesses in the Realtek RTL8195A Wi-Fi module, chief among them being a buffer overflow vulnerability (CVE-2020-9395) that permits an attacker in the proximity of an RTL8195 module to completely take over the module without having to know the Wi-Fi network password.
In the same vein, the RTL8170C Wi-Fi module's WPA2 four-way handshake mechanism is vulnerable to two stack-based buffer overflow vulnerabilities (CVE-2020-27301 and CVE-2020-27302, CVSS scores: 8.0) that abuse the attacker's knowledge of the PSK to obtain remote code execution on WPA2 clients that use this Wi-Fi module.
As a potential real-world attack scenario, the researchers demonstrated a proof-of-concept (PoC) exploit wherein the attacker masquerades as a legitimate access point and sends a malicious encrypted group temporal key (GTK) to any client (aka supplicant) that connects to it via WPA2 protocol. A group temporal key is used to secure all multicast and broadcast traffic.
Vdoo said there are no known attacks underway exploiting the vulnerabilities, adding firmware versions released after Jan. 11, 2021 include mitigations that resolve the issue. The company also recommends using a "strong, private WPA2 passphrase" to prevent exploitation of the above issues in scenarios where the device's firmware can't be updated.
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A malicious program intended to cause havoc with IT systems—malware—is becoming more and more sophisticated every year. The year 2021 is no exception, as recent trends indicate that several new variants of malware are making their way into the world of cybersecurity.
While smarter security solutions are popping up, modern malware still eludes and challenges cybersecurity experts.
The evolution of malware has infected everything from personal computers to industrial units since the 70s. Cybersecurity firm FireEye's network was attacked in 2020 by hackers with the most sophisticated form of hacking i.e., supply chain.
This hacking team demonstrated world-class capabilities to disregard security tools and forensic examination, proving that anybody can be hacked. Also, the year 2021 is already witnessing a bump in COVID-19 vaccine-related phishing attacks.
Let's take a look at the trends that forecast an increase in malware attacks:
COVID-19 and Work-from-Home (WFH)
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic last year, many companies offered remote access to their workforce. Poor remote infrastructure made their networks considerably less open and exposed. Recent research by Deloitte indicates that cybercriminals are exploiting the COVID-19 environment to attack companies, as approximately 24% of employees reported an increase in spam, fraudulent e-mails, and phishing attacks.
As many as 26% of employees keep copies of their company's important data in case of technical difficulty when working remotely. This also poses serious data theft security concerns. This puts remote-working organizations at risk to hackers who use modern malware to target them.
Evolution of Malware Variants in Q1 2021
This year has already seen several new malware variants appear. As of February 2021, some of the most dangerous malware reported can be seen as follows –
Fake updates through e-mail —This method involves hackers sending a phony e-mail to users telling them that there is an important update to install. The update is ransomware that encrypts users' documents. By blackmailing the user with severe consequences, including data theft, then asks for a ransom.
News updates — Cybercriminals send electronic news updates to users in this kind of attack. If the users unknowingly click one of these links, they provide the hackers with free access to their devices.
AI and IoT attacks — The new trend in cybercrime is that criminals create some of the most deadly viruses using Artificial Intelligence to get inside any network. Moreover, they can penetrate IoT devices to gain access to confidential information like passwords.
Cryptojacking — A hacker installs Crypto Jacking malware on mobile phones or computers and mines cryptocurrencies.
Clop — Runs on Windows by blocking its different processes, Clop Ransomware that encrypts user files undetected.
RaaS — Also known as Ransomware as a Service, has been hailed as one of the most widespread malware distribution methods this year. The term refers to cybercrime as a service provided by a network of hackers for someone else.
Route to Adequate Malware Protection
In today's environment of increasing complexity and advances in malware threats, it is imperative to safeguard against malware.
Learning and Adapting
Cybercriminals now use a variety of malicious software to compromise a computer system at every stage. For example, hackers can use phishing techniques to gain access to a network then use Emotet to spread across the system by exploiting network loopholes. After that, the attackers use malware such as Trickbot to collect valuable information such as financial details, customer details, credit card details, etc. In the final stage, malware like Conti would encrypt the files and ask for ransom.
Security teams can stay updated with the best information on the latest variants, capabilities, and potential impact if they know how the malware operates at various stages in a system. Knowing this information will allow them to devise protective measures against the network's resources.
Reducing remote work-related security vulnerabilities
With the outbreak of the Coronavirus in early 2020, the work environment changed dramatically. It has been almost a year since the virus made employees stay indoors. With the proliferation and thinning of network perimeters, WFH has exposed its infrastructure to malware threats. Because of this, organizations must take into consideration the WFH's cybersecurity arrangements. Furthermore, they must use robust security software on employee systems and use VPN for all work-related activities on the internet.
Employee awareness
Employees play a vital role in ensuring their company's cybersecurity bubble remains intact. Many malware campaigns begin by sending an e-mail communication to employees. To learn basic cybersecurity hygiene, employees must become familiar with password management, identify and report security threats, and recognize suspicious behavior. Regular content and training will assist employees in countering any malware threats they encounter.
Adopt a Culture of Comprehensive Security
Given the ongoing evolution of malware attacks and their capability to surpass what they were capable of, organizations should prioritize a strong malware protection strategy. Consultation with experienced cybersecurity experts like Indusface can help them create a solution that meets their needs.
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Basingstoke, England (CNN)Last May, Steve Bates' phone rang. The UK was in the midst of its first national lockdown -- there was a stay-at-home order, schools and most shops were closed, and experts were warning that a vaccine could still be years out. At the other end of the line was an old friend, Kate Bingham, a pharmaceutical investor who had just agreed to lead the UK's Vaccine Taskforce, a team of private sector experts assembled to secure vaccine doses for the British public. She wanted him to join."She wanted my contacts. She knew that I knew everybody in the industry," Bates, a lobbyist who heads the UK BioIndustry Association, told CNN. "Kate Bingham said to me, 'we've never made a vaccine that's worked against a human coronavirus. This is a long shot.'" Compelled by a sense of national duty in a time of crisis, Bates agreed to help.By that time, the British government had one of the highest national death tolls globally, having dragged its feet to impose lockdown restrictions, shown reluctance to enforce rules and following futile attempts to track and trace the spread of the virus. Its border was also still wide open, and the government was throwing money at a rotating cast of private sector consultants to secure basic personal protective equipment (PPE) -- an effort that appeared more successful at generating controversy than securing supplies. Read MoreBut the government's foresight in backing coronavirus vaccines has turned into one of the most surprising success stories of the pandemic. Despite its widely criticized pandemic response, which has led to more than 117,000 deaths and more than 4 million coronavirus cases to date, the UK has now administered 15 million coronavirus vaccine doses -- a target set by the government to reach everyone in its top four priority groups by February 15. The groups include everyone over 70, frontline health and social care workers, those living in care homes and the clinically extremely vulnerable. This total is more than Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Poland and Belgium combined. The UK has the third-highest vaccination rate worldwide behind Israel and the UAE. Nadhim Zahawi, the UK's minister for Covid-19 vaccine deployment, confirmed the goal had been accomplished a day early in a post on Twitter Sunday. "We will not rest till we offer the vaccine to the whole of phase 1," Zahawi wrote, referring to the priority groups set out by the government.Temporary vaccination centers, like this one at Basingstoke Fire Station in southern England, have been set up across the country. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson celebrated the moment, calling it a "significant milestone" and an "extraordinary feat." "In England I can now tell you we have now offered jabs to everyone in the first four priority groups, the people most likely to be severely ill from Coronavirus, hitting the first target we set ourselves," he wrote on Twitter.The British government also plans to give a first dose to the remaining risk groups and adults over 50 by the end of April.Across the country, soccer stadiums, horse racing tracks, cathedrals and mosques are being used as mass vaccination sites. And through the National Health Service (NHS), the government can reach almost every person in the country to schedule a vaccination appointment. In the southern English town of Basingstoke, a working fire station is being used for vaccinations. To accommodate the program, engines have been moved outdoors, emergency deployment routes have been overhauled and a small army of soldiers, firefighters, volunteers and nurses have moved in. "It feels like a wartime effort," says Mark Maffey, the NHS architect who led the transformation of the fire station and three other vaccination sites in the area.Staff prepare to give the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine to patients at a vaccination center set up inside Salisbury Cathedral on January 20. Big bets on 'longshot' vaccinesThe centralized NHS is key to getting shots in arms, but it was an early series of big bets on then-unproven vaccines that really vaulted the UK ahead of the global pack. Cautious not to repeat its PPE-purchasing mistakes and unwilling to rely solely on public servants who lacked expertise in vaccine procurement, Britain's Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance pushed Downing Street to bring in outside experts to form the vaccine taskforce. On paper, the unusual combination of public servants and current and former industry insiders seems like a recipe for conflicts of interest, but they were accountable to ministers and government auditors, explains Bates, who left the committee last month. The taskforce was quick to get behind a vaccine being developed by a group of scientists at the University of Oxford who had been working on a shot for the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome -- a disease caused by another type of coronavirus -- before shifting their focus to Covid-19. It wasn't long before a vaccine was developed, but the challenge would be getting it manufactured on an industrial scale, which is where AstraZeneca came in. Vaccines -- despite variants -- are still good newsThe British-Swedish pharmaceutical company was chosen because of its iron-clad commitment to prioritize the UK market, which, according to both parties, involved providing all doses made in the UK to the British government, and only exporting doses once the country had been supplied. In exchange, the UK government agreed to invest heavily in the vaccine's manufacture. "I wasn't going to settle for a contract that allowed the Oxford vaccine to be delivered to others around the world before us," Health Secretary Matt Hancock told UK radio station LBC earlier this month.Of the more than 100 vaccines in development worldwide at the time, the taskforce short-listed around 20 based on how quickly they could be trialled and made available. Ultimately, they chose seven based on the makers' ability to scale up production for the UK. Those seven included the three that have been approved to date by Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna and Oxford/AstraZeneca. Two others from Novavax and Johnson & Johnson have also shown promise in Phase 3 trials published last month. Bates says bureaucratic hoops were kept to a minimum. "I think having a small group makes decisions easier and faster," he said, adding that Bingham "having the hotline to the Prime Minister also made sure that the chains of command were very short at key moments when decisions were made." Going it aloneThe speed at which the UK has been able to approve and administer vaccines is due in part to the country's decision to go it alone, rather than joining the European Union's procurement effort. When the EU offered the UK the chance to join forces, it insisted it drop any ongoing contract discussions."That didn't feel like the right thing to do, so the UK didn't do it," said Bates, estimating the decision "probably gave us at least three months' advance work, which is proving invaluable." The UK's decision not to join Europe's procurement strategy was controversial. Last March, Martin McKee, a European health professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, predicted in the Guardian newspaper that Britain would pay more and get fewer vaccines by going it alone. "The timing of the pandemic ... could provide an opportunity to reflect on whether an isolationist ideology really is such a good idea," wrote McKee.His view has since changed. "I fully concede that I was wrong on this one," McKee told CNN. "I give full credit to Kate Bingham ... she did very well."But Britain's head start left Europe frustrated and lagging behind -- prompting a diplomatic spat across the English Channel. At one point in January, EU leaders even threatened to restrict exports of vaccines produced in Europe to even the score. From sermons to WhatsApp messages, these Britons are trying to dispel Covid-19 myths in minority communitiesLast month AstraZeneca clarified that it never contractually promised Europe it would be supplied with doses at the same rate as the UK. "Basically, we said we're going to try our best," the company's CEO Pascal Soriot explained to Italian newspaper La Repubblica. McKee believes the UK's success is also due to the well-organized and centralized NHS system, giving the country an advantage many other countries lack. The fire station in Basingstoke is able to inject more than 1,000 vaccine doses per day. Nationwide, daily injections have at one point topped 600,000. NHS staff, emergency services and ordinary volunteers are all starting to see their efforts pay off.The firefighters now trained to give shots in Basingstoke work under Steve Apter, the deputy chief fire officer for the county of Hampshire. Last summer Apter's mother was hospitalized with Covid-19 symptoms and later died of pneumonia. Her test eventually came back negative, but her symptoms meant she was isolated for days, unable to have her family at her bedside. Steve Apter, the deputy chief fire officer for the county of Hampshire, leads the team of firefighters who have now been trained as vaccinators."The sense of helplessness was overwhelming," he recalled. He is proud of how the fire service is contributing to the vaccination effort and can't help but feel a sense of national pride too."I've never experienced such open sense of shared purpose than we're seeing now."A previous version of this story stated that Steve Bates was not paid for his role on the taskforce. It has been updated to clarify that the UK government did compensate Bates' organization for his time spent on the taskforce. CNN's Matt Brealey, Darren Bull and Mark Baron contributed to this report.
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(CNN)Green Bay Packers star quarterback Aaron Rodgers confirmed he is unvaccinated against Covid-19 and is disappointed with the treatment he's been receiving in the media while appearing on The Pat McAfee Show on Friday."I realize I'm in the crosshairs of the woke mob right now," Rodgers said. "So, before my final nail gets put in my cancel culture casket, I think I would like to set the record straight on so many of the blatant lies that are out there about myself."Rodgers said the media was on a "witch hunt" to find out which players were vaccinated and blamed reporters for him saying he was "immunized" back in August.While talking with McAfee on his SiriusXM show, the three-time MVP repeated some Covid-19 misconceptions and said he has conferred with podcast host Joe Rogan on how to deal with a coronavirus infection.You asked, we're answering: Your top questions about Covid-19 and vaccinesRead MoreThe quarterback, who has led Green Bay to a 7-1 record, will not play in the Packers game against the Kansas City Chiefs this weekend due to Covid-19 protocols, the team's head coach Matt LaFleur announced Wednesday.The 37-year-old Rodgers said if any reporter would have asked a follow-up question, he would have explained he's "not an anti-vax flat earther," but that he's a "critical thinker."Rogers added he has been following the strict NFL protocols for unvaccinated players to a "T." Rodgers described the daily testing he is subjected to every day, even on off days, and believes the rules are in place to shame unvaccinated people. Rodgers said he has been tested over 300 times before testing positive this week.Rodgers said he experienced some mild symptoms for roughly 48 hours but currently "feels really good." He wasn't certain when he would return to the field or what protocols were in place for him now that he tested positive for the novel coronavirus.Quarterback took advice from Joe RoganRodgers said he consulted with podcast host Joe Rogan and took his advice on how he treated his own Covid-19."I consulted with a now good friend of mine, Joe Rogan, after he got Covid, and I've a lot of the stuff he recommended in his podcast and on the phone to me," Rodgers said. Packers star QB Aaron Rodgers out for Chiefs game due to Covid-19 protocols. Multiple outlets report he tested positive for virus"I'm going to have the best immunity possible now based on the 2.5-million-person study from Israel that the people that get Covid and recover, have the most robust immunity. I'm thankful for people like Joe stepping up and using his voice. I'm thankful for my medical squad and I'm thankful for all the love and support I've gotten but I've been taking monoclonal antibodies, ivermectin, zinc, vitamin C and DHCQ and I feel pretty incredible."Of these, only monoclonal antibodies are approved treatments for Covid-19 but those alone could account for any improvement in his symptoms.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noted an Israeli study looked at people who had been vaccinated six months before or longer. "Understanding infection-induced and vaccine-induced immunity over time is important, particularly for future studies to consider," they wrote.JUST WATCHEDGupta tries to convince Rogan to get vaccinated. See what happensReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHGupta tries to convince Rogan to get vaccinated. See what happens 06:51Rodgers said he did not get vaccinated because he has an allergy to an ingredient in the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines and was scared about the possible side effects from the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. He said the decision to seek alternative treatments was "what was best for my body."Rodgers said the NFL knew he was unvaccinated, and he had multiple conversations with NFL doctors including one where a doctor told him, "it is impossible for a vaccinated person to get Covid or spread Covid."When asked about Aaron Rodgers' claim that a NFL doctor told him "it is impossible for vaccinated person to get Covid or spread Covid," a league source tells CNN "no doctor from the league or the joint NFL-NFLPA infectious disease consultants communicated with the player."Rodgers told McAfee he had previously tried to "petition" the league that his homeopathic treatment of increasing his antibodies should be considered as an alternative to getting fully vaccinated via Moderna, Pfizer or Johnson & Johnson vaccines.Rodgers continued, "at that point I knew I was definitely not going to win the appeal." CNN has asked the NFL about this claim and whether the league has a comment.There is no evidence that homeopathic treatments can affect a person's antibodies, experts say.McAfee, a former NFL player and WWE wrestler turned sports commentator, said on Twitter in August he tested positive for a breakthrough case of Covid-19 despite being fully vaccinated.Vaccines better than previous infections, CDC saysRodgers said, "The vaccines do offer some protection for sure but there is a lot we don't know about them. ... There is a lot to natural immunity. ... If you have gotten Covid and recovered from it, that's the best boost to immunity you can have."Rodgers is not incorrect in thinking people who have recovered from Covid-19 have some immunity -- but it's not nearly as much immunity as vaccinated people have. A team of researchers led by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in October that vaccination protects people against coronavirus infection much better than previous infection does.Their study found people who had not been vaccinated and who ended up in the hospital were five times more likely to have Covid-19 than people who had been vaccinated within the past three to six months."All eligible persons should be vaccinated against COVID-19 as soon as possible, including unvaccinated persons previously infected with SARS-CoV-2," the researchers wrote in the CDC's weekly report, the MMWR.Rodgers expresses doubtsThe Green Bay quarterback paraphrased Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. while explaining his stance, "The great MLK said that 'You have a moral obligation to object to unjust rules and rules that make no sense.'" Rodgers said certain strict NFL protocols were not based on science, noting if he tested negative for Covid-19 every day and was surrounded by vaccinated people, why should he be "shamed" into wearing a mask throughout the Packers facility.In August, Rodgers was asked whether he had received the Covid-19 vaccine. Rodgers said he had been "immunized.""There's a lot of conversation around it, around the league, and a lot of guys who have made statements and not made statements," Rodgers said. "Owners have made statements. There's guys on the team that haven't been vaccinated. I think it's personal decision. I'm not going to judge those guys. There's guys that have been vaccinated and contracted Covid. So it's an interesting issue."The NFL said it is reviewing the situation. A league spokesperson told CNN in a statement, "The primary responsibility for enforcement of the Covid Protocols within Club facilities rests with each Club. "Failure to properly enforce the protocols has resulted in discipline being assessed against individual Clubs in the past. The league is aware of the current situation in Green Bay and will be reviewing with the Packers."Vaccinated players who test positive and remain asymptomatic are eligible to return after testing negative twice in a 24-hour span. Unvaccinated players are required to quarantine for 10 days and then test negative to return.CNN's Steve Almasy and Maggie Fox contributed to this report.
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Story highlightsFour killed in stampede at football matchMontagua president blames fake tickets (CNN)It should have been a day of celebration as Motagua were crowned champions in Honduras, but instead it was marred by tragedy.According to Honduras' national police, four people were killed and several injured in a stampede at the national stadium Sunday prior to the league final between Motagua and Honduras Progreso.Follow @cnnsport
The incident occurred, police say, when a group of fans tried to enter one section of the stadium in a violent manner.Montagua club president, Pedro Atala, said the incident was caused by false ticket sales and denied his club were responsible for overselling tickets.An emergency service worker stands next to the body of a fan killed in the stampede."There is a joy that we cannot hide, but we also have mixed feelings," Atala told Honduran TV.Read MoreREAD: Manchester United and Manchester City donate $1.3M to emergency terror fundREAD: Chelsea cancel victory parade amid security concerns"First and foremost, our deepest condolences to the people who died outside the stadium, due to selling of fake tickets and an increase in the number of fans that the police didn't expect.Rescue workers, police officers and fans surround the body of a supporter killed in the stampede."We want to make clear, that at no point was there overselling of tickets. That is easy to prove."We are going to try and find the relatives of the victims to help them as best we can."The match eventually went ahead following a minute's silence, with Montagua winning 3-0.Atala later tweeted that security officials had recommended the match should not be canceled as the stadium was already full.Rescue workers stretcher away a supporter injured in the stampede.Police say they had reinforced security before the match by placing 600 law enforcement officers at the stadium, in the country's capital, Tegucigalpa."To ensure order and safety of those attending the sporting event and avoiding violent events, in agreement with the authorities of the National League, it was decided to reinforce the control measures for the entry of fans into the stadium," a statement read.Police will now investigate the clubs to see if they oversold their tickets.
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Spain (CNN)Around 300,000 nonessential workers are estimated to have gone back to their jobs in Spain's Madrid region on Monday as the country began a partial lifting of lockdown restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of coronavirus, a spokesperson for Madrid's regional government told CNN. As Spain enters its second month of lockdown, some restrictions were eased, allowing those who cannot work from home, such as those in the construction and manufacturing industries, to return to work.However, shops, bars, and restaurants and other businesses considered nonessential remain closed.Drive-through funerals are being held in the epicenter of Spain's coronavirus pandemicSpain has been one of the countries worst affected by the coronavirus pandemic, with more than 169,000 confirmed cases so far -- the highest in Europe, and second only to the US, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University. The country has now recorded a total of more than 17,400 deaths. On Monday, it recorded the second-lowest daily rise in deaths for three weeks: 517 fatalities in the past 24 hours.Read MoreA cautious climbdownBut Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has cautioned that the nation's return to normal life will be "progressive," stressing that the resumption of normal activity will happen in phases and will be accompanied by hygiene measures and efforts to monitor new cases and prevent further contagion."We can't even know what kind of normality we're returning to," he said last week.Spanish Red Cross volunteers distribute face masks at the Chamartin Station in Madrid on April 13.Over the weekend, the government announced that police would begin handing out 10 million protective masks at metro stations and other transport hubs, while reiterating guidance on social distancing and regular hand-washing. Spain's central government has distributed one million coronavirus testing kits around the country, and a further five million will be sent out in the coming days and weeks."The climb has been difficult, the descent will also be," Sanchez told parliament last week, as the country's state of emergency was extended to April 26. Sanchez has warned that restrictions may need to be further extended.Spanish workers wear masks leaving the subway on April 13, in Madrid. 'Irresponsible and reckless'Still, the easing of restrictions has triggered concern in some quarters.Spain's General Workers Union (GTU) has raised concerns over the safety of those returning to work. The union, which has 940,000 members, according to its website, called on employers to be responsible for providing personal protection equipment for their staff.Related storiesChina restricts research into origins of coronavirusThe coronavirus pandemic could threaten global food supply, UN warnsBeijing faces a diplomatic crisis after reports of mistreatment of Africans in China causes outrageLive updates on the coronavirus pandemicSome opposition politicians and a number of regional governments have also criticized the easing of restrictions. Quim Torra, president of Catalonia, said returning people to work was "irresponsible and reckless" in a video statement posted to his verified Twitter account.Last week, a study published in medical journal The Lancet warned that coronavirus lockdowns across the globe should not be completely lifted until a vaccine for the disease is found. The study, based on China's outbreak, used mathematical modeling to show how lifting such measures prematurely could result in a sweeping second wave of infection. Spain is one of several European countries cautiously preparing to loosen restrictions. Austria said it would gradually begin to reopen shops after Easter, and in Germany a group of economists, lawyers and medical experts are recommending a gradual revival that would allow specific industries and workers to resume their activities while steps are taken to prevent a resurgence of coronavirus. Meanwhile, Denmark will reopen kindergartens and schools this week if coronavirus cases remain stable, and children in Norway will return to kindergarten a week later.
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The CryptoLocker Malware continues to spread, infected more than 12,000 U.S computers in one week and threatening millions of computers in the UK.
Just last week, The UK National Crime Agency urge people afflicted by CryptoLocker not to pay ransom, not least because there is no guarantee that they will even receive an unlock key.
Not even Police departments are immune to CryptoLocker. In November second week, Massachusetts' Swansea Police Department paid a 2 Bitcoin ($750 that time) ransom to decrypt images and Word documents encrypted by CryptoLocker ransomware.
"It gave us 100 hours to pay and it was literally a timer," said Police Department. "A big red screen comes up with a timer that says you have 100 hours to pay or your files will be encrypted forever."
Malware usually distributed through spam emails, encrypting the user's files on the infected machine and also the local network it is attached to. However, Police Department said the virus did not affect the software that the police use in reports or booking.
Security experts also commented that "The only reason this type of attack success is because people are willing to pay up. If no one ever paid, there would be no ransomware." But will they also not pay ransom for their very important files, if encrypted by malware ? Definitely everyone will, as the Police have to. Other attackers are also moving in this direction as well.
There are many other ways, following that you can protect your system from CryptoLocker before infection. Ensure you have best one active and up-to-date and if a computer becomes infected it should immediately be disconnected from any networks.
Read more detailed articles on Cryptolocker Ransomware:
Cryptolocker Ransomware makes different Bitcoin wallet for each victim
CryptoLocker Ransomware demands $300 or Two Bitcoins to decrypt your files
CryptoLocker developer launches Decryption Service website; 10 Bitcoins for Decryption Keys
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Cybersecurity researchers on Monday tied a string of attacks targeting Accellion File Transfer Appliance (FTA) servers over the past two months to data theft and extortion campaign orchestrated by a cybercrime group called UNC2546.
The attacks, which began in mid-December 2020, involved exploiting multiple zero-day vulnerabilities in the legacy FTA software to install a new web shell named DEWMODE on victim networks and exfiltrating sensitive data, which was then published on a data leak website operated by the CLOP ransomware gang.
But in a twist, no ransomware was actually deployed in any of the recent incidents that hit organizations in the U.S., Singapore, Canada, and the Netherlands, with the actors instead resorting to extortion emails to threaten victims into paying bitcoin ransoms.
According to Risky Business, some of the companies that have had their data listed on the site include Singapore's telecom provider SingTel, the American Bureau of Shipping, law firm Jones Day, the Netherlands-based Fugro, and life sciences company Danaher.
Following the slew of attacks, Accellion has patched four FTA vulnerabilities that were known to be exploited by the threat actors, in addition to incorporating new monitoring and alerting capabilities to flag any suspicious behavior. The flaws are as follows -
CVE-2021-27101 - SQL injection via a crafted Host header
CVE-2021-27102 - OS command execution via a local web service call
CVE-2021-27103 - SSRF via a crafted POST request
CVE-2021-27104 - OS command execution via a crafted POST request
FireEye's Mandiant threat intelligence team, which is leading the incident response efforts, is tracking the follow-on extortion scheme under a separate threat cluster it calls UNC2582 despite "compelling" overlaps identified between the two sets of malicious activities and previous attacks carried out by a financially motivated hacking group dubbed FIN11.
"Many of the organizations compromised by UNC2546 were previously targeted by FIN11," FireEye said. "Some UNC2582 extortion emails observed in January 2021 were sent from IP addresses and/or email accounts used by FIN11 in multiple phishing campaigns between August and December 2020."
Once installed, the DEWMODE web shell was leveraged to download files from compromised FTA instances, leading to the victims receiving extortion emails claiming to be from the "CLOP ransomware team" several weeks later.
Lack of reply in a timely manner would result in additional emails sent to a wider group of recipients in the victim organization as well as its partners containing links to the stolen data, the researchers detailed.
Besides urging its FTA customers to migrate to kiteworks, Accellion said fewer than 100 out of 300 total FTA clients were victims of the attack and that less than 25 appear to have suffered "significant" data theft.
The development comes after grocery chain Kroger disclosed last week that HR data, pharmacy records, and money services records belonging to some customers might have been compromised as a result of the Accellion incident.
Then earlier today, Transport for New South Wales (TfNSW) became the latest entity to confirm that it had been impacted by the worldwide Accellion data breach.
"The Accellion system was widely used to share and store files by organisations around the world, including Transport for NSW," the Australian agency said. "Before the attack on Accellion servers was interrupted, some Transport for NSW information was taken."
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Own an Android smartphone? Beware, as just an innocuous-looking image on social media or messaging app could compromise your smartphone.
Along with the dangerous Quadrooter vulnerabilities that affected 900 Million devices and other previously disclosed issues, Google has patched a previously-unknown critical bug that could let attackers deliver their hack hidden inside an innocent looking image via social media or chat apps.
In fact, there is no need for a victim to click on the malicious photo because as soon as the image's data was parsed by the phone, it would quietly allow a remote attacker to take control over the device or simply crash it.
The vulnerability is similar to last year's Stagefright bug (exploit code) that allowed hackers to hijack Android devices with just a simple text message without the owners being aware of it.
The Stagefright flaw affected more than 950 Million Android devices and resided in the core Android component Stagefright — a multimedia playback library used by Android to process, record and play multimedia files.
However, the recent vulnerability (CVE-2016-3862) resided in the way images used by certain Android applications parsed the Exif data in an image, SentinelOne's Tim Strazzere, the researcher who uncovered the vulnerability, told Forbes.
Any app using Android's Java object ExifInterface code is likely vulnerable to the issue.
An Image Received...? Your Game is Over
Making a victim open the image file within an affected app like Gchat or Gmail, a hacker could either cause a victim's phone to crash or remotely execute malicious code to inject malware on the phone and take control of it without victim's knowledge.
"Since the bug is triggered without much user interaction – an application only needs to load an image a specific way – triggering the bug is as simple as receiving a message or email from someone," Strazzere said. "Once that application attempts to parse the image (which was done automatically), the crash is triggered."
According to Strazzere, attackers could develop a simple exploit inside an image to target a large number of vulnerable Android devices.
Strazzere crafted exploits for the affected devices and found that it worked on Gchat, Gmail and most other messenger and social media apps, though he did not disclose the names of the other non-Google apps affected by the flaw.
When will I expect a Fix?
All versions of Google's operating system from Android 4.4.4 to 6.0.1 are vulnerable to the image-based hack, except today's update that fixed the vulnerability.
The researcher even successfully tested his exploits on a handful of phones running Android 4.2 and Amazon devices and found that the devices remain unpatched, leaving a large number of users of older Android devices exposed.
So, if you are not running an updated version of operating system and/or device, you probably are vulnerable to the image-based attack.
Google has delivered a patch to fix the issue, but given the shaky history of handset manufacturers and carriers rolling out security patches, it is not known how long the companies will take to update vulnerable Android devices.
Google rewarded Strazzere with $4,000 as part of the company's Android bug bounty program and another $4,000 as, Forbes reports; Strazzere had pledged to give all his reward money to Girls Garage, a program and workspace for girls aged 9-13.
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Online guitar tutoring website TrueFire has apparently suffered a 'Magecart' style data breach incident that may have potentially led to the exposure of its customers' personal information and payment card information.
TrueFire is one of the popular guitar tutoring websites with over 1 million users, where wanna-be-guitarists pay online to access a massive library of over 900 courses and 40,000 video lessons.
Though TrueFire hasn't yet publicly disclosed or acknowledged the breach, The Hacker News learned about the incident after a few affected customers posted online details of a notification they received from the company last week.
The Hacker News also found a copy of the same 'Notice Of Data Breach' uploaded recently to the website of Montana Department of Justice, specifically on a section where the government shares information on data breaches that also affect Montana residents.
Confirming the breach, the notification reveals that an attacker gained unauthorized access to the company's web server somewhere around mid last year and stole payment information of customers that were entered into its website for over five months, between August 3, 2019, and January 14, 2020.
"While we do not store credit card information on our website, it appears that the unauthorized person gained access to the site and could have accessed the data of consumers who made payment card purchases while that data was being entered," the breach notification says.
"We cannot state with certainty that your data was specifically accessed; however, you should know that the information that was potentially subject to unauthorized access includes your name, address, payment card account number, card expiration date, and security code," the breach notification says.
While the company didn't explain how the attackers managed to compromise its website or if they had injected a digital credit card skimmer on it, the scenario looks very similar to a Magecart style attack.
For those unaware, Magecart hackers typically compromise websites and secretly insert malicious JavaScript code into their checkout pages that silently captures payment information of customers making purchasing on the sites and then sends it to the attacker's remote server.
The company discovered this security incident on January 10 and claimed to have now patched the web vulnerability that allowed attackers to compromise its website in the first place.
Guitarists who made any online payment at the TrueFire website between last August and this January are advised to block the payment cards used on it and request a new one from their respective financial institution.
Other customers are also advised to be vigilant and keep a close eye on their bank and payment card statements for any unusual activity.
As a precaution, all users are also encouraged to change passwords for their TrueFire account and for any other online account where they use the same credentials.
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(CNN)Edinson Cavani is apologizing for language he used in a social media post after he scored two goals for Manchester United in its Premier League match against Southampton on Sunday.The Uruguayan thanked a follower using the phrase "gracias negrito," which translates to thank you, little Black one. The phrase is seen as an affectionate term of endearment in South America but considered offensive in other parts of the world, because its meaning can be misconstrued.Having come on as a substitute at halftime on Sunday with Manchester United 2-0 behind, Cavani had an instant impact, scoring twice and assisting the other goal to help his side to a dramatic victory. "The message I posted after the match on Sunday was intended as an affectionate greeting to a friend, thanking him for his congratulations after the game," Cavani said in an apology on the Manchester United website. "The last thing I wanted to do was cause offence to anyone. I am completely opposed to racism and deleted the message as soon as it was explained that it can be interpreted differently. I would like to sincerely apologise for this." Read MoreREAD: Argentine police search home of Diego Maradona's doctor following the soccer great's deathCavani heads towards Southampton's goal on Sunday.Manchester United followed up his statement with one of their own, saying: "It is clear to us that there was absolutely no malicious intent behind Edinson's message and he deleted it as soon as he was informed that it could be misconstrued. Edinson has issued an apology for any unintentional offence caused. Manchester United and all of our players are fully committed to the fight against racism."Before Cavani released the apology, England's Football Association confirmed to CNN it was aware of the social media post and was looking into it. According to new FA regulations, any player found guilty of an offense of discrimination will face a minimum six-match suspension. But if a regulatory commission finds there was no "genuine intent" to discriminate or cause offense, the suspension could be dropped to three games.Visit CNN.com/sport for more news, features, and videosComparisons are being drawn with a 2011 incident involving another Uruguayan player, Luis Suárez.Suarez, then a striker for Liverpool, repeatedly called then-Man United captain Patrice Evra "negro" during a Premier League game. At the time, Suarez argued the term was not offensive in his homeland. The FA, however, disagreed with Suarez. A report into the incident said that Suarez did not use the term "negro" in "the conciliatory and friendly way that was common and inoffensive in Uruguay."Suarez was banned for eight games as a result and fined 40,000 pounds.
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The United States government has released a rare alert about an ongoing, eight-year-long North Korean state-sponsored hacking operation.
The joint report from the FBI and U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) provided details on "DeltaCharlie," a malware variant used by "Hidden Cobra" hacking group to infect hundreds of thousands of computers globally as part of its DDoS botnet network.
According to the report, the Hidden Cobra group of hackers are believed to be backed by the North Korean government and are known to launch cyber attacks against global institutions, including media organizations, aerospace and financial sectors, and critical infrastructure.
While the US government has labeled the North Korean hacking group Hidden Cobra, it is often known as Lazarus Group and Guardians of Peace – the one allegedly linked to the devastating WannaCry ransomware menace that shut down hospitals and businesses worldwide.
DeltaCharlie – DDoS Botnet Malware
The agencies identified IP addresses with "high confidence" associated with "DeltaCharlie" – a DDoS tool which the DHS and FBI believe North Korea uses to launch distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks against its targets.
DeltaCharlie is capable of launching a variety of DDoS attacks on its targets, including Domain Name System (DNS) attacks, Network Time Protocol (NTP) attacks, and Character Generation Protocol (CGP) attacks.
The botnet malware is capable of downloading executables on the infected systems, updating its own binaries, changing its own configuration in real-time, terminating its processes, and activating and terminating DDoS attacks.
However, the DeltaCharlie DDoS malware is not new.
DeltaCharlie was initially reported by Novetta in their 2016 Operation Blockbuster Malware Report [PDF], which described this as the third botnet malware from the North Korean hacking group, after DeltaAlpha and DeltaBravo.
Other malware used by Hidden Cobra include Destover, Wild Positron or Duuzer, and Hangman with sophisticated capabilities, including DDoS botnets, keyloggers, remote access tools (RATs), and wiper malware.
Hidden Cobra's Favorite Vulnerabilities
Operating since 2009, Hidden Cobra typically targets systems running older, unsupported versions of Microsoft operating systems, and commonly exploits vulnerabilities in Adobe Flash Player to gain an initial entry point into victim's machine.
These are the known vulnerabilities affecting various applications usually exploited by Hidden Cobra:
Hangul Word Processor bug (CVE-2015-6585)
Microsoft Silverlight flaw (CVE-2015-8651)
Adobe Flash Player 18.0.0.324 and 19.x vulnerability (CVE-2016-0034)
Adobe Flash Player 21.0.0.197 Vulnerability (CVE-2016-1019)
Adobe Flash Player 21.0.0.226 Vulnerability (CVE-2016-4117)
The simplest way to defend against such attacks is always to keep your operating system and installed software and applications up-to-date, and protect your network assets behind a firewall.
Since Adobe Flash Player is prone to many attacks and just today the company patched nine vulnerability in Player, you are advised to update or remove it completely from your computer.
The FBI and DHS have provided numerous indicators of compromise (IOCs), malware descriptions, network signatures, as well as host-based rules (YARA rules) in an attempt to help defenders detect activity conducted by the North Korean state-sponsored hacking group.
"If users or administrators detect the custom tools indicative of HIDDEN COBRA, these tools should be immediately flagged, reported to the DHS National Cybersecurity Communications and Integration Center (NCCIC) or the FBI Cyber Watch (CyWatch), and given highest priority for enhanced mitigation," the alert reads.
Besides this, the agencies have also provided a long list of mitigations for users and network administrators, which you can follow here.
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According to release announcement on Pastebin by unknown developers in a Russian-language BlackHole Exploit Kit 2.0 released with more latest Exploits. BlackHole is one of the most dominant exploit toolkits currently available in the underground market. It enables attackers to exploit security holes in order to install malicious software on victim's systems.
The new variant doesn't rely on plugindetect to determine the Java version that's installed, thus speeding up the malware download process. Old exploits that were causing browsers to crash and "scary visual effects" have been removed.
The exploit kit is offered both as a "licensed" software product for the intrepid malware server operator and as malware-as-a-service by the author off his own server.
Some interesting claims by developer about new version:
prevent direct download of executable payloads
only load exploit contents when client is considered vulnerable
drop use of PluginDetect library (performance justification)
remove some old exploits (leaving Java atomic & byte, PDF LibTIFF, MDAC)
change from predictable url structure (filenames and querystring parameter names)
update machine stats to include Windows 8 and mobile devices
better breakdown of plug-in version information
improved checking of referrer
block TOR traffic
Finally, a number of "private tricks" have been implemented, which the author prefers to keep a secret because he fears that competitors and antivirus companies are "sneaking around." The developer offers a one-day rental of capacity on his server for as little as $50, up to a month-long lease for $500 (with larger fees for traffic over 70,000 web hits per day).
For those who want to run their own BlackHole server, licenses start at $700 for a 3-month license (which includes software support) and range up to $1,500 for a full year, plus $200 for the multidomain version. For those who want to cover their tracks, a site clean-up package comes priced at $300.
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(CNN)Think everyone's working from home as the novel coronavirus spreads? Think again, a new report argues."There's a lot of misinformation about how much people are able to telework. It's actually quite a small share of the workforce. ... The vast majority of people can't," says Heidi Shierholz, senior economist and director of policy at the Economic Policy Institute in Washington.In a post on the think tank's website Thursday, Shierholz and fellow economist Elise Gould highlighted data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics as they made the case that the federal government needs to do more to help workers as the coronavirus crisis unfolds."Less than 30% of workers can work from home," they wrote, "and the ability to work from home differs enormously by race and ethnicity."People! Please quit starting sentences with "Now that everyone is working at home..." LESS THAN 30% OF WORKERS CAN WORK FROM HOME. https://t.co/WgdHKSS7Ye— Heidi Shierholz (@hshierholz) March 16, 2020
Black and Hispanic workers in the United States are "much less likely" to be able to work from home, Gould and Shierholz said.Read MoreHere's the breakdown of the share of US workers who can telework, by race and ethnicity, according to BLS data from 2017-2018:• 37% of Asian workers• 29.9% of white workers• 19.7% of black or African American workers• 16.2% of Hispanic or Latino workers• 31.4% of non-Hispanic or Latino workersFederal government ramps up work from home amid worker frustrationsWhy is there such a discrepancy?"It just comes down to the fact that in the United States there's still a lot of occupational segregation by race and ethnicity," says Shierholz, who was the Department of Labor's chief economist from 2014-2017.For example, she said, there's a large concentration of Hispanic workers in construction and a large concentration of black workers in service sector jobs. The economists' analysis notes that most low-wage workers can't telework. How to work from home with kids (without losing it)"Only 9.2% of workers in the lowest quartile of the wage distribution can telework, compared to 61.5% of workers in the highest quartile," Gould and Shierholz wrote.And the largest percentage of workers who can't telework are in the leisure and hospitality industry.Why is all of this important to keep in mind? Gould and Shierholz argue the data shows how much further the federal government needs to go in its efforts to support workers."A much higher share of people who can't telework will lose their jobs in this recession than those who can," Shierholz says.
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Story highlightsCredit rating agency Moody's has downgraded 16 Spanish banksThe government denied rumors of a run on the Spanish bank Bankia on ThursdayMarket confidence has been dented by continuing political uncertainty in GreeceSpain has seen its borrowing costs rise amid concern it could fall victim to the debt crisisSpain's government called for calm Friday, a day after rating agency Moody's downgraded 16 Spanish banks in the latest sign of distress in Europe.Among those who saw their ratings lowered were giants Banco Santander and BBVA, the country's two largest banks."On behalf of the government, I want to first send a message of calm to the investors and depositors as the government ... tries to guarantee the solvency and capacity of all the institutions to carry out their obligations," Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria said. At a Cabinet meeting Friday, Spanish ministers agreed that the top priority regarding the economy is controlling the deficit. Moody's cited concerns about the banks' exposure to Spain's faltering economy and the "reduced" ability of the Spanish government to support them in a crisis.JUST WATCHEDBankia troubles put Spain on edgeReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHBankia troubles put Spain on edge 01:55JUST WATCHEDSpain's nationalized 'Bankia' recessionReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHSpain's nationalized 'Bankia' recession 01:43JUST WATCHEDOpen Mic: Spain's economyReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHOpen Mic: Spain's economy 02:12JUST WATCHEDMay 15th movement back in SpainReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHMay 15th movement back in Spain 01:25The downgrades come amid rising concern about the political and economic turmoil in Greece, and the potential ripple effect of that crisis on nations like Spain and Italy that are struggling with low growth and big debts. "The Spanish economy has fallen back into recession in first-quarter 2012, and Moody's does not expect conditions to improve during 2012," the rating agency said as it announced the downgrades. "Moreover, the real-estate crisis that began in 2008 is ongoing, and unemployment has risen to very high levels, with rising risks to white-collar employment (in addition to extremely-high youth unemployment) affecting the outlook for banks' household lending."Shares in Spanish banks were up in early trading Friday, as markets digested news of the downgrades, which had been widely expected.The Spanish bank Bankia, which was effectively nationalized this month, was not mentioned by Moody's, but the government was forced to step in Thursday to deny rumors of a run on bank deposits."I think this is a good moment to send out a calming message to all the savers. It is not true that there would be a large-scale exit of savings from Bankia at this moment," the country's deputy economy minister said.Bankia also issued a statement saying deposit holders could be confident about the safety of their savings. The bank saw shares surge by as much as 30% early Friday, recovering some of the heavy losses suffered in recent days.Global investors have been unnerved by the political uncertainty in Greece, amid fears it could leave the eurozone should anti-austerity parties win enough votes in elections next month and default on its huge debts.Ratings agency Fitch downgraded Greece's long-term credit rating from B- to CCC on Thursday, citing the increased risk that Greece could be forced to leave the eurozone.An exit from the eurozone would be "probable" if the elections fail to produce a government willing to stand by earlier austerity agreements reached with eurozone leaders, Fitch said.In turn, the country's departure from the eurozone would "result in widespread default on private sector as well as sovereign euro-denominated obligations," the ratings agency said.This would have an impact on the other 16 nations in the eurozone single-currency area, it warned.Spain's borrowing costs have been rising as investors in the bond market fear it could become the next euro area nation to fall victim to the debt crisis.Overall, Spain has pledged to cut its national deficit to 5.3% of GDP, but the European Commission forecast last week that the country would fail to meet that goal, instead hitting 6.4% of GDP. Spain has announced roughly $35 billion in budget cuts this year.
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Today I desire to propose an interview with Andrey Komarov, CEO of IntelCrawler and Dan Clements, President of IntelCrawler. IntelCrawler is a multi-tier intelligence aggregator, which gathers information and cyber prints from a starting big data pool of over 3, 000, 000, 000 IPv4 and over 200, 000, 000 domain names, which are scanned for analytics and dissemination to drill down to a desired result.
I have prepared for them a series of answers and questions to analyze significant evolutions in the cyber-threat landscape:
Q. Which are the most concerning cyber threats for private businesses and government organizations?
A. Avoiding talking about usual and standard things, of course, the most dangerous and annoying is the emergence of fundamentally new vulnerabilities in critical applications and systems. "Zero day" vulnerabilities market is developing every day and taking the shape of a part of the future cyber warfare market, as it is still in the process of formation. Neither consumers in the face of government or companies, nor vendors are not ready for such kind of threat, which makes mitigation actions very complicated.
Q. Which are the industries most exposed to cyber attacks and why?
A. Just imagine, what would be interesting for you, if your main interests were money and information? It is two main reasons of all past and today's cyber attacks in the world. First of all, it is all related to profitable commercial business, such as private banking and industrial sector, ending with government infrastructures, which relates to state sponsored attacks. It is true, as cyber offensive approaches displace "old school", such as signal intelligence, as it is much cheaper and easier in the 21st century. The role of information takes new forms, making the computer communications as a battlefield of modern cyber warfare.
Which are the factors that most of all have influenced the design of malicious code in the last year (e.g. P2P communication protocols, advanced evasion techniques, hiding C&C in Tor networks)
Malware coders are interested in hiding of the communications between the infected host and C&C, that's why the stable trend is to create or to use alternative means of communications. That's why, there were lots of new kinds of samples, which used C&C in TOR or I2P, which was really exotic for the first time, but then became one of the standards for the cybercriminals.
Q. Which is the role of the intelligence in the fight to the cybercrime?
A. The role of e-crime intelligence is huge, as sometimes only timely notification about planned threat can help to prevent cyber attack or fraud. There are some difficulties in this niche as well, such as the heterogeneity of geographies cyber criminals live, the languages they speak, opportunity of deep infiltration in Underground communities, gathering information on the real identity of the criminals in the age of anonymity and impersonality and etc., all these aspects forcing us to organize systematical monitoring of several the most important regions, such as Asian segment, former USSR, risky EU-based countries, such as Romania, and use a large network of trusted sources. Software protection ways can't help on 100%, that's why human resources and intelligence are one of the most important additional elements.
Q. Malware and Internet of things, what to expect in the next months?
A. First of all, new variants of mobile malware, as it will be one of the most actual for the nearest future, because of global "mobilization". Secondly, new kinds of online-banking trojans and the appearance of medication of POS/ATM malicious code, as "skimming" becomes too expensive and risky. Thirdly, hacking and surveillance will damage your privacy more and more, as it is inseparable.
Q. Does it exist a marked distinction between cybercrime and state-sponsored hacking?
A. Yes, as state-sponsored hacking has more specifics. Interesting fact, that firstly cybercriminality creates the trend for further state-sponsored hacking, governments copy its actions and explore the methods and means they use in that or this country, as it is really different. Just compare, Chinese hackers and Latin American hackers, absolutely different style of intrusions, fundamentally different approaches on malicious code, as Chinese stuff is more sophisticated, because of great experience and scientific potential across the whole country.
Q. Which are the governments most active in cyberspace?
A. You should be very cautions talking about exact governments in cyber world, because it is still not very transparent. Good example, we have detected the C&C placed in Morocco, but the owners of the botnets who were behind using email accounts registered on GMX.DE. Another is when the malware after reverse engineering and unpacking had strings written in Hebrew, but hosted in Latvia. Despite these facts, the leaders of this industry certainly are: China, USA, Russia, Germany, France, UK, UAE and Saudi Arabia and Israel.
Q. Do you think it is possible a major cyber attack against a government network or a critical infrastructure in the next year?
A. Yes, as it is one of the today's main interests of bad actors, doesn't matter state sponsored or general criminals.
Q. Do you think it is possible that a Stuxnet like malware is already operating on the Internet?
A. You never know, but I think that the topic of embedded systems backdooring or malware distribution under PLC/RTU/SCADA is still very actual. And was not deleted from the plans of the intelligence community.
Dan Clements: IntelCrawler President, former Cardcops president, one of the first cybercrime intelligence company, which worked with major banks in the US on compromised data recovery.
Andrey Komarov: IntelCrawler CEO, author of OWASP SCADA Security Project. Expert in critical infrastructure protection (CIP) and SCADA security assessment. Responsible for cyber intelligence and e-crime intelligence topics in the company, as well as for R&D on Big Data and IPv4/IPv6 address space research.
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Story highlightsPeople on a sliver of land caught in a Soviet time warp long to be part of RussiaTransnistria is part of Moldova and an unrecognized self-declared countryThey see Russia as a protecting force and a place to work and tradeOne woman explains if the Russian military arrived people would cheerThe previous night we'd been turned away by stern-looking border guards. A categorical "no entry" to Transnistria. Trans-where? Transnistria is a breakaway state, recognized by no sovereign nation. It's a sliver of land sandwiched between Moldova and Ukraine and only a little larger than Rhode Island, the smallest state in the United States."You can't come in. Right now there is no permission for foreigners and no permission for journalists," said the Transnistrian border guard, clad in an oversized peaked cap with Soviet-style hat-badge.READ: Russian lawmaker: West always thinks worst of usIt was past midnight and we were too tired to argue. To be honest, we had expected as much. A week earlier, Transnistrian authorities had fast-tracked our request for a journalist visa to report inside their territory.Instead of waiting the normal 10 days' processing time, officials had responded within 36 hours. It was a speedy "no."Map showing Transnistria Photos: Transnistria: A land in limbo Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – Former Transnistria President Igor Smirnov, wearing the light gray suit, attends Independence Day celebrations in Tiraspol, Transnistria, on September 2, 2009. Transnistria is a breakaway state, recognized by no sovereign nation. Sandwiched between Moldova and Ukraine, it's only a little larger than Rhode Island, the smallest state in the United States.Hide Caption 1 of 16 Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – People watch the Transnistrian army and police during a parade in Tiraspol in 2009.Hide Caption 2 of 16 Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – Transnistrian army and police are seen during the parade in 2009. Transnistria split from Moldova, a former Soviet republic, in a two-year war that erupted as the Soviet Union fell apart. The Russians stepped in to back Transnistria but never recognized it as an independent state.Hide Caption 3 of 16 Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – A woman films a scene from "Tea in the Morning," a show on state television in Transnistria.Hide Caption 4 of 16 Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – Children form a line as they attend a classical dance lesson in Tiraspol in 2009.Hide Caption 5 of 16 Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – Children dance together during the lesson.Hide Caption 6 of 16 Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – Workers for the Kvint company produce cognac and wine at a Tiraspol facility in 2009.Hide Caption 7 of 16 Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – A child enjoys a Transnistrian playground.Hide Caption 8 of 16 Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – A child poses for a photo at a farm in 2009.Hide Caption 9 of 16 Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – Sunbathers enjoy warm weather in Dnestrovsc, Transnistria, in 2009.Hide Caption 10 of 16 Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – Children are seen at a Transnistrian orphanage in 2009.Hide Caption 11 of 16 Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – A young girl plays in a backyard in 2009.Hide Caption 12 of 16 Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – A scene from a Tiraspol nightclub in 2009.Hide Caption 13 of 16 Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – Young people dance in Tiraspol in 2009.Hide Caption 14 of 16 Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – An altar is seen along a road in Transnistria in 2009.Hide Caption 15 of 16 Photos: Transnistria: A land in limboTransnistria: A land in limbo – A young girl is on board a train from Moscow to Tiraspol in 2009. Hide Caption 16 of 16Transnistria split from the former Soviet republic of Moldova following a two-year war (1990-1992) that erupted as the Soviet Union collapsed. The Russians stepped in to back Transnistria -- located on the right bank of the River Dniestr -- but never recognized it as an independent state.It became a land in limbo.More than a decade later, and after Russian troops marched into Ukraine's Crimea region, NATO's top military commander Gen. Philip Breedlove warned Moscow may be eyeing other targets.Western intelligence has shown tens of thousands more Russian troops massed on Ukraine's eastern border.'Frozen conflict'Breedlove suggested the force -- backed by tanks and attack helicopters -- was large enough to roll right through Ukraine from east to west and into Transnistria.The general described this as one of Russia's "frozen conflicts" -- an unresolved political and territorial dispute -- which Moscow could reignite at any time in a bid to expand its influence across the region.Like the generals in Moscow and Washington, we pored over our map, tracking backroads and alternate routes into the self-declared country.We decided to try to visit as tourists; our target was the "Equator" a top nightclub in the Transnistrian border town of Bender.Attempting our approach this time from Moldova, we sloshed a half bottle of local brandy on the floor of our minivan to give it a party smell. Maybe they got bored of our incoherent fast-talk or perhaps bought the idea that Transnistrian nightlife was a big draw for international partygoers. After a long wait, we were waved through.A statue of Lenin guards a building with the Soviet star still on top in Transnistria.As we rolled past decaying heavy industry and tumbledown Soviet-era apartment blocks, it was clear Transnistria needed more than a fancy nightclub to give it a touch of glamor.At the doors of the "Equator", we were informed that the night's planned event was body painting and a contest to win free cocktails. The rules did not seem entirely clear.We headed instead for an early night in the capital Tiraspol. My last foray into cocktail drinking in former Soviet states had ended badly. A week earlier, up on the Ukraine's northeast frontier with Russia, a Ukrainian tank commander had cracked open a jar of pickled tomatoes, offered up some raw eggs and uncorked home-made vodka.When the fruit vodka ran out -- we ended the chilly night, in a foxhole, drinking shots of a cloudy liquid from a plastic bottle. Before he passed out, the gunner explained it was the cleaning fluid for the tank's electronics.No desire to repeat that in Transnistria.Trapped in timeAs we headed early Sunday into downtown Tiraspol, it was easy to see Transnistria is a place trapped in time.The hammer and sickle is still proudly emblazoned on the Transnistrian flag. A Soviet star is perched atop the city council building and a few blocks down, a towering statue of Lenin rises like a guardian angel.The roads are named after revolutionary icons: Marx, Engels, Lenin. There's also just plain "Communist Street."At a flea market, old men traded Soviet army cap badges and shoulder flashes. Many here still hanker after the glory days of the Cold War."Of course it was good with the Soviet Union. We wanted to be with Russia and still want to be with Russia," one elderly lady told me. She wrapped her arms around herself as she explained how she had felt protected by the old U.S.S.R.Viktor, one of the men selling old Soviet military mementos added: "It was good in those days but we know we cannot turn back time. But we want to join Russia now and set up a free-trade zone.""We don't want to be part of Moldova. They only grab money for their own pockets," he added.JUST WATCHEDRussia: U.S. helped provoke Ukraine unrestReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHRussia: U.S. helped provoke Ukraine unrest 01:29JUST WATCHEDPutin keeping options open in UkraineReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHPutin keeping options open in Ukraine 05:46JUST WATCHEDRubio: This is not 'win-lose' with PutinReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHRubio: This is not 'win-lose' with Putin 03:24Pro-RussianTalking to people here, it's hard to fathom why NATO chiefs would warn of an impending Russian invasion of Transnistria. The doors seem to be wide open and the welcome mat is out."Let them come. Here people are all for it. If the Russian military comes everybody will shout 'hooray,'" a chatty blonde woman said.Transnistrians have repeatedly called to be allowed to join the Russian Federation. Moscow has so far failed to recognize Transnistria's independence -- insisting that it should first resolve its dispute with Moldova.After its annexation of Crimea, some political and military analysts believe Russia may be readying to redraw some of Eastern Europe's borders without further consultation.Away from the flea market, stands "La Dolce Vita," an Italian-style pavement café that serves only instant coffee and dozens of varieties of sugary cakes.Law student Katya and boyfriend Sergey, an IT student, were consumed in a very public show of affection. Their minds were more focused on love not war. But they paused briefly for questions."If the Russians come in it wouldn't be a tragedy at all. The Russian military is already here," Sergey said. The couple added that they intended to go to Russia once they'd graduated to look for well-paid work there. They said good jobs were hard to find in Transnistria.When the Soviet star waned, a new star rose over Transnistria -- that of Wild West economics.An ex-KGB agent and former president appears to be one of the biggest businessmen in town. He goes under the brand name "Sheriff" and has a chain of supermarkets, gas stations and even Tiraspol's top soccer club.Other businesses here may not be so mainstream. International economists often describe Transnistria as a state whose fortunes are built on smuggling booze and tobacco and selling old Soviet weapons.Out in the countryside, Anna Ivanna has no head for shady dealings. I find her hoeing weeds from her small vineyard. She says her land is perfect for growing organic grapes. Some of it goes to produce Kvint -- a Transnistrian cognac.She believes becoming part of Russia would bring greater economic benefits like cheaper energy, especially Russian natural gas for heating her home and powering local industry. She's also heard Russian pensions are four times higher than in Transnistria."Why do we need Europe? It's good for us to be part of Russia. Maybe Europe is OK for the young people," she said.Russian soldiers never left Transnistria, after its 1990-1992 independence war with Moldova. A contingent of around 1,200 occupies bases and highway checkpoints here -- another indication Russian President Vladimir Putin would not need to invade since his troops are already here.On the outskirts of the capital, we venture into another Soviet-era apartment complex. On a wall, there's a starkly poetic line of graffiti scrawled in English. It could be the lament of star-crossed lovers or perhaps a sign of the political times."I love you. But why I love you?...I never know."A message from Transnistria. To Russia with love.READ: Ukraine leader: Surrender and you won't be prosecutedREAD: Opinion: Turning Crimea into 'Putinland'?
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(CNN)There's no silver bullet to the climate crisis, but nuclear fusion may be the closest thing to it. In the quest for a near-limitless, zero-carbon source of reliable power, scientists have generated fusion energy before, but they have struggled for decades to sustain it for very long. On Wednesday, however, scientists working in the United Kingdom announced that they more than doubled the previous record for generating and sustaining nuclear fusion, which is the same process that allows the sun and stars to shine so brightly.Nuclear fusion is, as its name suggests, the fusing of two or more atoms into one larger one, a process that unleashes a tremendous amount of energy as heat.The core of the JET tokamak machine in Culham, England. Nuclear power used today is created by a different process, called fission, which relies on splitting, rather than fusing, atoms. But that process creates waste that can remain radioactive for tens of thousands of years. It's also potentially hazardous in the event of an accident, such as Japan's 2011 Fukushima disaster, triggered by an earthquake and tsunami. Fusion, on the other hand, is much safer, can produce little waste and requires only small amounts of abundant, naturally-sourced fuel, including elements extracted from seawater. This makes it an attractive option as the world transitions away from the fossil fuels driving climate change.Read MoreIn a giant donut-shaped machine known as a tokamak, scientists working in the English village of Culham, near Oxford, were able to generate a record-breaking 59 megajoules of sustained fusion energy over five seconds on December 21 last year. Five seconds is the limit the machine can sustain the power before its magnets overheat.
The JET tokamak near Oxford, England, produced a record amount of sustained energy from nuclear fusion. Credit: EUROFusion.
A magnetic field is required to contain the high temperatures needed to carry out the fusion process, which can be as high as 150 million degrees Celsius, 10 times hotter than the center of the sun."Our experiment showed for the first time that it's possible to have a sustained fusion process using exactly the same fuel mix planned for future fusion power plants," Tony Donné, CEO of EUROfusion, said at a press conference.EUROfusion, a consortium that includes 4,800 experts, students and staff from across Europe, carried out the project in partnership with the UK Atomic Energy Authority. The European Commission also contributed funding.The potential for fusion energy is enormous. The experiment used the elements deuterium and tritium -- which are isotopes of hydrogen -- to fuel the fusion. Those elements are likely to be used in commercial-scale fusion, and can be found in seawater."The energy you can get out of the fuel deuterium and tritium is massive. For example, powering the whole of current UK electrical demand for a day would require 0.5 tonnes of deuterium, which could be extracted from seawater -- where its concentration is low but plentiful," Tony Roulstone from the University of Cambridge's Department of Engineering told CNN.He said the fusion generated by the tokamak -- called the Joint European Torus (JET) -- was around the same as a wind turbine, and could power one house's energy for a day.A view of Torus Hall, where the JET tokamak machine lies."But if generated repeatedly, it could power thousands of houses."Experts say the results prove that nuclear fusion is possible, and no longer a pipedream solution for the climate crisis. "These landmark results have taken us a huge step closer to conquering one of the biggest scientific and engineering challenges of them all," said Ian Chapman, CEO of the UK Atomic Energy Authority. Mark Wenman, a nuclear materials researcher at Imperial College London, said in a statement that the experiment's results are "exciting," and that they show "fusion energy really is no longer just a dream of the far future -- the engineering to make it a useful, clean power source is achievable and happening now."JET has been subject to such extreme heat and pressure that this experiment is likely the last it will cope with.But its results are seen as a huge boon for ITER, a fusion megaproject in the south of France supported by the US, China, the European Union, India, Japan, Korea and Russia. The ITER project is 80% built and aims to begin nuclear fusion sometime in 2025-26.While JET's goal was to prove that nuclear fusion could be generated and sustained, ITER's aim is to produce a tenfold return on energy, or 500 MW of fusion power from 50 MW of energy put in. Nuclear energy scares people. The climate crisis is giving it another chanceThe results are promising, but mastering nuclear fusion as an everyday energy source is still likely a long way off."The JET results are impressive and probably will get better as they proceed through their experiments. They are producing high power 12 MW, but right now just for five seconds. Much longer fusion burn is what is required," Roulstone said. The most recent report from Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on the latest science shows that the world must nearly halve its greenhouse gas emissions this decade and reach zero net emissions by 2050 to keep global warming in check. That means making a rapid transition away from fossil fuels, like coal, oil and gas. Those actions are required to have any hope of containing warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, seen as a threshold to substantially worsening climate impacts, according to the IPCC.This story has been updated with additional information.
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(CNN)Jim Radford was only 15 when he served as a ship's galley boy on June 6, 1944, making him the youngest known D-Day veteran.On that fateful day, he helped build the Mulberry harbor at Gold Beach, which allowed the British Royal Navy to get personnel, vehicles and supplies onto the beaches of France.Seventy-five years later, Radford, who has always been into music -- folk songs, in particular -- has released a new version of a poignant ballad he wrote in 1969 to honor those who died in Normandy.His song, "The Shores of Normandy," has been at No. 1 on Amazon's singles chart for most of the week, beating the likes of Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber. Profits from song sales will support the British Normandy Memorial, due to be inaugurated Thursday by UK Prime Minister Theresa May and French President Emmanuel Macron. Read More"I'm obviously delighted and extremely surprised to be No. 1 on this particular chart, and I hope it does well because the more copies are downloaded, the more money we'll have to pay for this wonderful memorial we're building here," Radford said in a recorded statement.What D-Day taught my grandpa"It's very important to me and other veterans that there should be a place like this where people can come and reflect because we're not going to be around for much longer to tell the story, and the story needs to be told because people need to learn lessons from it."Radford, who was born in Hull and now lives in South East London, said he wrote the song during his first visit to Normandy after the war. "I had been back to France, but I hadn't been to Normandy. I remember it all very clearly, but I thought I'd got it all in perspective and I wasn't going to be emotional about it," he said in a video on the Normandy Memorial Trust page."It wasn't until I went back, saw the children playing on the beach, that I was sort of overwhelmed with recollection of what I've seen and moved to tears by the contrast, as a lot of veterans were."It took Radford several years to write it all down and a long time to sing it in public because it was "a powerful recollection" for him, he said.The song is also available for download via the Normandy Memorial Trust website.
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Story highlightsAtletico Madrid go top of La Liga after Diego Costa's goal helps them beat GranadaReal Madrid lose at Sevilla to slip to third in the table behind BarcelonaBarca thrash Celta Vigo 3-0 thanks to a brace from Brazilian striker Neymar Liverpool beat Sunderland to keep their English Premier League title dream aliveThe three-way battle for the Spanish league title took another dramatic twist on Wednesday night as Real Madrid suffered their second defeat in four days.After a humbling by Barcelona in El Clasico on Sunday, Real were sunk 2-1 away at Sevilla thanks to a brace from Colombian striker Carlos Bacca.To add to the misery of Cristiano Ronaldo and company, their two title rivals -- Barcelona and Atletico Madrid -- both triumphed to relegate them to third in the table.Atletico hit the summit after a solitary goal from Diego Costa saw them past Granada, while Barcelona sit just a point back after they eased past Celta Vigo 3-0.Read: Bayern clinch Bundesliga titleReal now trail their city rivals by three points, and have an inferior head-to-head record, which would come into effect if they ended the season level on points.Los Blancos did take the lead on 14 minutes when Cristiano Ronaldo's free kick took a big deflection off the wall to wrong foot Sevilla goalkeeper Beto.JUST WATCHEDSturridge's World Cup dreamReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHSturridge's World Cup dream 01:40JUST WATCHEDZidane and Ronaldo tackle povertyReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHZidane and Ronaldo tackle poverty 02:20JUST WATCHEDHow Bayern Munich became the World's best teamReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHHow Bayern Munich became the World's best team 03:52But the home side drew level just five minutes later when Bacca finished off a counter attack that started when Xabi Alonso squandered possession.JUST WATCHEDDavid Beckham bringing MLS team to MiamiReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHDavid Beckham bringing MLS team to Miami 01:05Real missed a host of chances to restore their lead and paid the price when Bacca netted the winner with 20 minutes remaining. It meant Real suffered successive league defeats for the first time since 2009.Earlier in the evening, Barcelona registered a comfortable 3-0 victory over Celta Vigo largely thanks to their potent strike force but lost goalkeeper Victor Valdes to a serious knee injury.Neymar has struggled to find consistency after his move from Brazilian club Santos but he outscored the Spanish club's record all-time scorer Lionel Messi on the night by grabbing two goals.Barcelona were in front after just six minutes, Alexis Sanchez galloping on to Messi's defense-splitting pass, before squaring for Neymar who registered his first goal for the club since the middle of February.Valdes then departed on a stretcher after landing badly when saving a shot on goal, the club confirming he had torn his cruciate ligament and will have to undergo surgery.Argentina striker Messi made it 2-0 on the half hour mark, running onto Andres Iniesta's through ball before firing into the net for his 23rd goal of the season and his eighth in the last four matches.Neymar wrapped up the match in the second half with his 11th league goal of the campaign, finishing smartly from inside the area.In the English Premier League, Liverpool boosted their hopes of landing a first domestic title since 1990 with a 2-1 victory over lowly Sunderland.Captain Steven Gerrard opened the scoring with a fierce free kick from the edge of the penalty area before England striker Daniel Sturridge grabbed his 20th league goal of the season in the second half.Sturridge and the EPL's top scorer Luis Suarez both wasted opportunities before a header from Sunderland's South Korean midfielder Ki Sung-Yueng set up a nervy final 15 minutes.The victory -- Liverpool's seventh in a row in the league -- sent them second in the table, one point behind leaders Chelsea.Elsewhere, West Ham beat ten-man Hull City 2-1 thanks to an own goal from James Chester to move up to 11th in the standings.Hull's goalkeeper Allan McGregor was sent off for a foul on Mohamed Diame early on, Mark Noble converting the penalty. Nikica Jelavic leveled for Hull before Chester's error restored West Ham's lead.In Italy, Juventus restored their lead at the top of Serie A to 14 points after a brace from Argentina striker Carlos Tevez helped them to a 2-1 win over Parma.Two goals from Duvan Zapata helped Napoli to a 4-2 victory away at Catania and stay comfortable in third while AC Milan won 2-0 at Fiorentina thanks to strikes from Philippe Mexes and Mario Balotelli.Read: Derby delight for Man CityRead: Teen star cleared to make U.S. debut
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A new surge of malware has been discovered which goes on to infect hundreds of thousands of computers worldwide and allegedly steals users' social and banking site credentials.
Few days back, a list of 5 million combinations of Gmail addresses and passwords were leaked online. The search engine giant, Google said that Gmail credentials didn't come from the security breaches of its system, rather the credentials had been stolen by phishing campaigns and unauthorized access to user accounts.
Just now, we come across another similar incident where cyber criminals are using a malware which has already compromised thousands of Windows users worldwide in an effort to steal their Social Media account, Online account and Banking account Credentials.
A Greek Security Researcher recently discovered a malware sample via a spam campaign (caught in a corporate honeypot), targeting large number of computers users rapidly. He investigated and posted a detailed technical analyses of the malware on his blog.
After reverse engineer the malware sample file, he found that the cybercriminals are using a combination of software AutoIT (Automate day-to-day tasks on computers) and a "commercial" Keylogger named "Limitless Keylogger" to make it FUD i.e. Fully Undetectable from static analysis.
Keylogger is a critical type of software program for cyber criminals, which records every input typed into the keyboard and easily detects passwords for users' Email accounts, Social Media accounts and Online Bank accounts.
This malicious application captures every keystrokes users press and send them to a specified email address linked to the cyber criminal. More interestingly, the malware uses AutoIT in order to evade detection by Antivirus programs.
The malware distributed in the spam campaign comes as a WinRAR SFX executable file with a custom icon which drops 4 malicious files onto the victim's computers with hidden and system attributes.
The Malware archive includes:
AutoIT script 'update.exe' of 331MB
Python script to "deobfuscate" AutoIT script
oziryzkvvcpm.AWX - Settings for AutoIT script
sgym.VQA – Another Encrypted malware/Payload Binary
Initially the obfuscated AutoIT Script is of size 331MB, because it contains lots of garbage content, but after deobfuscate process it becomes only 55kbyte in size with clean malicious code.
Researcher found lot of functions and various functionalities in the malware code those allow the malicious software to protect itself from detection.
On Further reserve engineering, he found that the malware sends the collected keystroke data to the cybercriminal via SMTP email server. So he sniffed the whole conversation of malware SMTP traffic and discovered that the keylogger was sending all keystrokes of the user, screenshots, recovery data (saved passwords from several applications/browsers) to an email ID - "ontherun4sales@yandex.ru".
He also extracted the hardcoded SMTP email ID username and passwords of the respective Yandex mail address from the malware source code.
Researcher told SecNews, "The detection was accomplished in the past few days and found that the malware was being Greek is targeting users (minimum numerical cases)."
"Possibly some Indonesian hackers might have used the malicious software available on the Russian hacking forum sites" they said. "and the targets are well known companies from retail industry,oil,airlines etc"
At last, the researcher also disclosed some online FTP servers using Google hacks, where the data has been uploaded by the different variants of the Limitless Logger by various hacking groups.
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Story highlightsMohammed Merah was killed March 22 by policeHe had been sought in connection with 7 killingsThe father says police could have captured his son alive The father of Mohammed Merah filed a lawsuit Monday here alleging murder in the killing by police of his son in March in southern France, the father's lawyer said."I can confirm to you that this afternoon that there has been a lawsuit against unnamed persons for murder with aggravating circumstances concerning those who gave the orders at the top of the police," said Isabelle Courtant-Peyre, a member of the legal team representing Mohamed Benalel Merah.The legal team that filed the complaint is led by Algerian lawyer Zahia Mokhtari, she said.Mohammed Merah was killed March 22 by police after a 32-hour standoff at the apartment in Toulouse where he was holed up.He was wanted for the killings of three French paratroopers, a rabbi, and three Jewish children ages 4, 5, and 7. Two other people were seriously wounded in shootings blamed on him.JUST WATCHEDFrench gunman buried in Toulouse ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHFrench gunman buried in Toulouse 01:21JUST WATCHEDTimeline of Toulouse standoffReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHTimeline of Toulouse standoff 02:40JUST WATCHEDWho is French shootings suspect?ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHWho is French shootings suspect? 03:22Benalel Merah had said in March that he was planning to sue because France could have captured his son alive, but instead chose to shoot him."I totally condemn what my son Mohammed Merah did in France," he said at the time, adding that he believed his son must have been tricked.Merah was tracked down by police 10 days after the first shooting on March 11 and fatally shot as the standoff came to a bloody end.Then-President Nicolas Sarkozy rejected Merah's father's accusation that the killing could have been avoided."As head of state, I would have preferred that Mohammed Merah be arrested alive. The police did a remarkable job, and I consider that any debate about that question is shameful," he told BFM-TV. Merah's uncle, meanwhile, has denied statements made by French authorities that Merah was an al Qaeda sympathizer and that he had traveled to Afghanistan or Pakistan to train to use arms.Azizi, the uncle, said Merah was a victim of an extremist group that he got to know while he was in jail.Authorities have said they placed Merah, a petty criminal, under surveillance after he visited Pakistan and Afghanistan. Critics have asked why he was not being more closely watched.He said that he had attended an al Qaeda training camp, according to Paris prosecutor Francois Molins, and was on the U.S. no-fly list for that reason, a U.S. intelligence official said.Al Jazeera received video of the shootings but chose not to broadcast or distribute it. The video of the shootings on March 11, 15 and 19 was apparently recorded by a camera around the gunman's neck.
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Security researchers have been warning about a simple technique that cyber criminals and email scammers are using in the wild to bypass most AI-powered phishing detection mechanisms implemented by widely used email services and web security scanners.
Dubbed ZeroFont, the technique involves inserting hidden words with a font size of zero within the actual content of a phishing email, keeping its visual appearance same, but at the same time, making it non-malicious in the eyes of email security scanners.
According to cloud security company Avanan, Microsoft Office 365 also fails to detect such emails as malicious crafted using ZeroFont technique.
Like Microsoft Office 365, many emails and web security services use natural language processing and other artificial intelligence-based machine learning techniques to identify malicious or phishing emails faster.
The technology helps security companies to analyze, understand and derive meaning from unstructured text embedded in an email or web page by identifying text-based indicators, like email scams mimicking a popular company, phrases used to request for payments or password resets, and more.
However, by adding random zero font-size characters between the indicator texts present in a phishing email, cybercriminals can transform these indicators into an unstructured garbage text, hiding them from the natural language processing engine.
Therefore, the email looks normal to a human eye, but Microsoft reads the entire garbage text, even if some words are displayed with a font size of "0."
"Microsoft can not identify this as a spoofing email because it cannot see the word 'Microsoft' in the un-emulated version," reads Avanan's blog post. "Essentially, the ZeroFont attack makes it possible to display one message to the anti-phishing filters and another to the end user."
Besides the ZeroFont technique, Avanan also detected hackers using other similar tricks that involve Punycode, Unicode, or Hexadecimal Escape Characters in their phishing attacks.
Last month, researchers from the same company reported that cybercriminals had been splitting up the malicious URL in a way that the Safe Links security feature in Office 365 fails to identify and replace the partial hyperlink, eventually redirecting victims to the phishing site.
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Story highlightsMohamed Al Fayed sells soccer's Fulham to billionaire N.F.L. owner Shahid Khan Although the selling price wasn't revealed, reports suggest it was around $230 million The Cottagers cemented their place in England's top division under Al FayedKhan moved to the U.S. at the age of 16 and turned himself into one of the world's richest menFulham became the sixth soccer team in England's Premier League to fall into U.S. ownership when the charismatic Mohamed Al Fayed sold the club to billionaire and N.F.L. owner Shahid Khan. The deal, which had been in the works, was confirmed on Fulham's website Friday. The selling price wasn't disclosed, although several British media outlets reported it was upwards of $225 million. Fulham said Khan assumes full ownership of the Cottagers, "debt-free, as of today." "It has been a pleasure and privilege to be the Chairman of Fulham Football Club for 16 memorable years," Al Fayed, 84, told Fulham's website. "I am now delighted to be passing this great and historic Club into the care and stewardship of an outstanding man who has already achieved much in his life and will, I am sure, take Fulham on to even greater things."By his hard work, vision and determination, Shahid Khan has become a living embodiment of the American success story. His achievements speak for themselves. "I met him twice prior to our successful transaction this week and have been very favorably impressed."Al Fayed bought Fulham in 1997 for roughly $9 million and proceeded to pump around $300 million into the club based in southwest London, not far from Harrods -- the luxurious and iconic London department store Al Fayed owned before selling it to Qatar Holdings for a reported $2.3 billion in 2010. Read: Al Fayed sells HarrodsWhile never challenging for the Premier League title, Fulham cemented its spot in the world's most watched league after winning promotion from the second tier in 2001 and even reached the Europa League final in 2010. JUST WATCHEDBeckham appearance causes stampedeReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHBeckham appearance causes stampede 00:30JUST WATCHEDMourinho returns to ChelseaReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHMourinho returns to Chelsea 03:08JUST WATCHEDWhy did soccer stadium roof collapse?ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHWhy did soccer stadium roof collapse? 02:48Training facilities improved, Craven Cottage was revamped and Fulham has permission to increase the capacity of the ground to 30,000. It was during his stint with Fulham, though, that Al Fayed suffered heartbreak, losing his son, Dodi, in the car crash that also killed Princess Diana in Paris in 1997. Al Fayed never shied away from doing things his own way. He commissioned a statue of Michael Jackson -- his friend -- after the singer died in 2009 and put it outside Fulham's Craven Cottage stadium that sits on the banks of the River Thames. Some fans didn't like it but Al Fayed didn't care. Read: Al Fayed defends Jackson statueHe now plans to spend more time with his grandchildren in retirement. "I am sad but proud of our achievements," said Al Fayed. "I am very grateful to Fulham's fans, the most incredible fans in the world. They have given me their support and affection whenever they have seen me at home games. "I would never let them down. I have passed the Club to a talented, honest and highly capable man who respects Fulham and its traditions. He is a great sportsman." The Pakistan-born Khan, according to Forbes, was worth $2.9 billion as of last March. JUST WATCHEDBeckham says goodbye to soccerReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHBeckham says goodbye to soccer 01:03JUST WATCHED2012: Ferguson: 'Racism still exists'ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCH2012: Ferguson: 'Racism still exists' 03:29JUST WATCHEDSee boy, 8, defeat MLS teamReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHSee boy, 8, defeat MLS team 03:05He moved to the U.S. from Pakistan at the age of 16 to study at the University of Illinois, became a U.S. citizen and turned himself into one of the world's richest men. Forbes reported that his company, automotive parts manufacturer Flex-N-Gate, generated sales of $3.9 billion in 2012. Khan bought the Jacksonville Jaguars two years ago and the Jaguars will contest a game in London for the next four seasons.U.S. owners have had spotty records in the Premier League -- think George Gillett and Tom Hicks at Liverpool -- so Fulham fans can only hope for the best. Other Premier League teams currently owned by Americans are Manchester United, Arsenal, Aston Villa, Sunderland and Liverpool, with the latter now in the hands of John Henry. Read: Henry seals Liverpool takeover"Fulham is the perfect club at the perfect time for me," Khan, in his early 60s, told Fulham's website. "I want to be clear, I do not view myself so much as the owner of Fulham but a custodian of the club on behalf of its fans. "My priority is to ensure the club and Craven Cottage each have a viable and sustainable Premier League future that fans of present and future generations can be proud of. "We will manage the club's financial and operational affairs with prudence and care, with youth development and community programs as fundamentally important elements of Fulham's future." Fulham's first league game of the new season under Khan is an away trip to Sunderland on August 17.
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A hacker who was selling details of nearly 890 million online accounts stolen from 32 popular websites in three separate rounds has now put up a fourth batch of millions of records originating from 6 other sites for sale on the dark web.
The Hacker News today received a new email from the Pakistani hacker, who goes by online alias Gnosticplayers and previously claimed to have hacked dozens of popular websites from companies which, according to him, probably had no idea that they were compromised.
The hacker last month made three rounds of stolen accounts up for sale on the popular dark web market called Dream Market, posting details of 620 million accounts stolen from 16 websites in the first round, 127 million records from 8 sites in the second, and 92 million from 8 websites in the third.
Although while releasing the third round Gnosticplayers told The Hacker News that it would be his last batch of the stolen database, the hacker released the fourth round containing nearly 27 million new users' records originating from 6 other websites.
Gnosticplayers told The Hacker News in an email that the fourth round up for sale on Dream Market belonged to the following 6 hacked websites:
Youthmanual — Indonesian college and career platform — 1.12 million accounts
GameSalad — Online learning platform —1.5 million accounts
Bukalapak — Online Shopping Site — 13 million accounts
Lifebear — Japanese Online Notebook — 3.86 million accounts
EstanteVirtual — Online Bookstore — 5.45 Million accounts
Coubic — Appointment Scheduling — 1.5 million accounts
The hacker is selling each of the above listed hacked databases individually on Dream Market for a total worth 1.2431 Bitcoin, that's roughly $5,000.
Since the majority of compromised services listed in previous rounds have acknowledged the data breaches, it's likely that the new round of stolen accounts being sold on the underground market is also legit.
At this moment it is unknown that any of the services listed in the fourth round was aware of the data breach of its network and has previously disclosed any security incident.
The Hacker News has reached out the affected companies to inform them about the leak and to learn if they have already warned their users about any security incident related to the breach.
What's next? If you are a user of any of the above-listed services or websites disclosed in the previous three rounds, you should consider changing your passwords and also on other services in the event you re-used the same password.
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Story highlightsSteven Bowditch wins the Valero Texas Open to qualify for the Masters for the first timeThe Australian claimed a winner's check, the first of his career, for $1.2 millionBowditch has long battled depression and attempted to take his own in 2006He is now a spokesperson for Australian non-profit organization beyondblueEight years after he attempted to take his own life, Steven Bowditch is heading to the Masters.The Australian has battled with depression throughout his career, his nadir coming in 2006 when he attempted to drown himself.But the 30-year-old has fought back from the brink and, after Sunday's win at the Valero Texas Open, he will take to the tee at Augusta National for the first time when the year's opening major begins on April 10.Since his suicide bid in 2006 Bowditch has rebuilt his life and career and is now a spokesman for beyondblue, an Australian organization which raises awareness of depression."Steven has long-struggled with a depressive condition and several years ago he publicly explained his plight while raising money for beyondblue," the non-profit organization's chairman Jeff Kennett said in a statement.JUST WATCHEDHistoric golf club to welcome women?ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHHistoric golf club to welcome women? 01:49JUST WATCHEDPatrick Reed becomes youngest WGC winnerReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHPatrick Reed becomes youngest WGC winner 03:10"Steven today is yet another example to anyone who experiences depressive or anxiety conditions, that by seeking professional help and staying focused you can not only overcome your own struggles, but can rightly be called a champion."He has triumphed on the toughest golf circuit in the world and it shows that with the appropriate support, people with depression or anxiety are capable of achieving the extraordinary."It sends a message to all Australians, particularly those in sport, that when you are struggling it sometimes can help to be open and talk about it."While Steven will today have a wonderful trophy, this achievement itself is a shining prize that will inspire others with depression to reach similar heights."Read: Standing inside Tiger Woods' shoesCollecting a winner's check for $1.2 million, his first on the PGA Tour, is a far cry from where Bowditch eight years ago.In an interview with Golf Digest in 2009, Bowditch revealed that, after going 12 days without sleep, he drank an entire bottle of Scotch and fell asleep for two days.JUST WATCHEDASU's life lessons for budding golfersReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHASU's life lessons for budding golfers 04:24JUST WATCHEDIs Matt Fitzpatrick ready for the Masters?ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHIs Matt Fitzpatrick ready for the Masters? 06:15When he woke up, Bowditch put on his heaviest clothes and jumped in a swimming pool in a bid to commit suicide.His girlfriend dragged him out and resuscitated him.In clinching the biggest win of his 13-year professional career, Bowditch had to battle wind, "moving rocks" and the odd cactus..The world No. 134 took a three-shot lead into Sunday's final round but he was three-over on the first four holes allowing American Matt Kuchar into a share of the lead.Kuchar bogeyed three of the first five holes on the back nine, allowing Bowditch to triumph. His round of 76 was the highest by the winner of an event since Vijay Singh at the PGA Championship in 2004."After a period of time out there, with the way I was playing, I kind of just accepted the fact that I was going to be playing from cactuses, moving rocks, missing putts and just had to deal with it every time," Bowditch told the PGA Tour's official website. "It happened so frequently that it never really surprised me. I was just lucky enough that the wind was up enough today that no one else could squeeze in there and shoot a good score."When asked how he will get ready for the year's first major, the 30-year-old joked: "I don't even know how to get there."Blog: The right decision for the wrong reasons?
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DarkSide, the hacker group behind the Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack earlier this month, received $90 million in bitcoin payments following a nine-month ransomware spree, making it one of the most profitable cybercrime groups.
"In total, just over $90 million in bitcoin ransom payments were made to DarkSide, originating from 47 distinct wallets," blockchain analytics firm Elliptic said. "According to DarkTracer, 99 organisations have been infected with the DarkSide malware - suggesting that approximately 47% of victims paid a ransom, and that the average payment was $1.9 million."
Of the total $90 million haul, the DarkSide's developer is said to have received $15.5 million in bitcoins, while the remaining $74.7 million was split among its various affiliates. FireEye's research into DarkSide's affiliate program had previously revealed that its creators take a 25% cut for payments under $500,000 and 10% for ransoms above $5 million, with the lion's share of the money going to the recruited partners.
Elliptic co-founder and chief scientist Dr. Tom Robinson said the "split of the ransom payment is very clear to see on the blockchain, with the different shares going to separate Bitcoin wallets controlled by the affiliate and developer."
What's more, an analysis of blockchain transactions uncovered the syndicate had made $17.5 million in the past three months alone, with roughly 10% of the profits coming from payouts made by chemical distribution company Brenntag (nearly $4.4 million) and Colonial Pipeline. The Georgia-headquartered firm said it paid 75 bitcoins ($4.4 million as of May 8) to restore access, CEO Joseph Blount told the Wall Street Journal.
DarkSide, which went operational in August 2020, is just one of many groups that operated as a service provider for other threat actors, or "affiliates," who used its ransomware to extort targets in exchange for a cut of the profits, but not before threatening to release the data — a tactic known as double extortion.
But in a sudden turn of events, the prolific cybercrime cartel last week announced plans to wind up its Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) affiliate program for good, claiming that its servers had been seized by law enforcement. Its bitcoin wallet was also emptied to an unknown account.
The fallout from the biggest known cyberattack on U.S. energy industry is only the latest example of how a spate of ransomware incidents are increasingly affecting the operations of critical infrastructure and emerging a national security threat. The events have also turned the spotlight on implementing necessary strategies to ensure vital functions remain operational in the event of a significant cyber disruption.
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Exploitation of Rowhammer attack just got easier.
Dubbed 'Throwhammer,' the newly discovered technique could allow attackers to launch Rowhammer attack on the targeted systems just by sending specially crafted packets to the vulnerable network cards over the local area network.
Known since 2012, Rowhammer is a severe issue with recent generation dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips in which repeatedly accessing a row of memory can cause "bit flipping" in an adjacent row, allowing anyone to change the contents of computer memory.
The issue has since been exploited in a number of ways to achieve remote code execution on the vulnerable computers and servers.
Just last week, security researchers detailed a proof-of-concept Rowhammer attack technique, dubbed GLitch, that leverages embedded graphics processing units (GPUs) to carry out Rowhammer attacks against Android devices.
However, all previously known Rowhammer attack techniques required privilege escalation on a target device, meaning attackers had to execute code on targeted machines either by luring victims to a malicious website or by tricking them into installing a malicious app.
Unfortunately, this limitation has now been eliminated, at least for some devices.
Researchers at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and the University of Cyprus have now found that sending malicious packets over LAN can trigger the Rowhammer attack on systems running Ethernet network cards equipped with Remote Direct Memory Access (RDMA), which is commonly used in clouds and data centers.
Since RDMA-enabled network cards allow computers in a network to exchange data (with read and write privileges) in the main memory, abusing it to access host's memory in rapid succession can trigger bit flips on DRAM.
"We rely on the commonly-deployed RDMA technology in clouds and data centers for reading from remote DMA buffers quickly to cause Rowhammer corruptions outside these untrusted buffers," researchers said in a paper [PDF] published Thursday.
"These corruptions allow us to compromise a remote Memcached server without relying on any software bug."
Since triggering a bit flip requires hundreds of thousands of memory accesses to specific DRAM locations within tens of milliseconds, a successful Throwhammer attack would require a very high-speed network of at least 10Gbps.
In their experimental setup, researchers achieved bit flips on a targeted server after accessing its memory 560,000 times in 64 milliseconds by sending packets over LAN to its RDMA-enabled network card.
Since Rowhammer exploits a computer hardware weakness, no software patch can completely fix the issue. Researchers believe the Rowhammer threat is not only real but also has potential to cause real, severe damage.
For more in-depth details on the new attack technique, you can head on to this paper [PDF], titled "Throwhammer: Rowhammer Attacks over the Network and Defenses," published by the researchers on Thursday.
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Point-of-sale (POS) is the hottest topic in payment structures and its one of the most popular technology topics as well. A Point-of-sale (POS) machine is a computerized replacement for a cash register. It has ability to quickly process a customer's transaction, accurately keep the records, process credit and debit cards, connect to other systems in a network, and manage inventory.
A basic POS system would consist of a computer as its core part provided with application specific programs for the particular environment in which it will serve, along with a cash drawer, barcode scanner, receipt printer and the appropriate POS software. Point-of-sale (POS) terminals are used in most industries that have a point of sale such as a service desk, including restaurants, lodging, entertainment, and museums.
Due to the better track inventory and accuracy of records, the Point-of-sale (POS) machine is used worldwide and it can be easily set-up, depending on the nature of the business. But on the other hand, Point-of-sale (POS) systems are critical components in any retail environment and the users are not aware of the emerging threats it poses in near future.
Last week I read an excellent book entitled 'HACKING POINT OF SALE', written by Slava Gomzine, that summarizes, systemizes, and shares knowledge about payment application security.
In the Book, the author covers all the aspects of card payment processing from the security point of view that mainly depends on confidentiality, integrity, and availability.
In past few months, we have seen many massive data breaches targeting POS machines and the largest one is TARGET data breach occurred during the last Christmas holidays. The third-largest U.S. Retailer in which over 40 million Credit & Debit cards were stolen, used to pay for purchases at its 1500 stores nationwide in the U.S.
Not Target alone, multiple retailers including Neiman Marcus, Michaels Store were also targeted involving the heist of possibly 110 million Credit-Debit cards, and personal information.
Later, Target and other retailers confirmed that a malware was embedded in point-of-sale (POS) equipment at its checkout counters to collect secure data as the credit cards were swiped during transactions. That means the main theft resides in the company's POS system.
The Book 'Hacking Point of Sale: Payment Application Secrets, Threats, and Solutions' is all about the In-Depth technical information of attacks and vulnerabilities in Point-of-sale (POS) system, along with the extensive knowledge about the mitigation and protection measures.
THE BOOK WALKS THE READER THROUGH -
Technological overview of Electronic payment systems
POS applications architecture
Communication protocols
Attacks on Point-of-sale Systems
Step-by-step explanation of credit card fraud processes
POS payment application vulnerabilities and non-software attacks
Weak Encryption mechanisms and Poor key management
How to prevent attacks on payment applications using Cryptography
How to Protect the cardholders' sensitive information
How to protect the application itself by utilizing client and server certificates, digital signatures, and code obfuscation.
From a security perspective, the most critical risk lies in the payment process, because if the information that the customers hand over is captured somehow, the cyber criminals can use it to commit credit card frauds.
Also, many point-of-sale (POS) terminals are built using embedded versions of Microsoft Windows, which means that it is trivial for an attacker to create and develop malware that would run on a POS terminal.
Attackers can also steal the information by leveraging the weakness in the point-of-sale (POS) environment such as unprotected memory, unencrypted network transmission, poorly encrypted disk storage, card reader interface, or compromised pinpad device.
There are more than a billion active credit and debit card users in US alone, thus an active target for money motivated hackers. If we look at the figures, in 2011, POS terminals and payment card information was involved in almost 48% of security breaches which is more than any other data type breach.
Due to lack of concern and security measures, point-of-sale (POS) systems have become an attractive target for cybercriminals and to overcome the upcoming threats we should know its architecture, the areas of attacks and the defense measures.
Either you are a Developer, Security Architect , QA Analyst, Security Researcher or a Hacker, this book is really for you to grab the in-depth research of the point-of-sale (POS) systems, how it works, how it could be exploited, and what protection measures should be taken.
The Publisher 'Wiley' is offering a special 50% Discount on 'Hacking Point of Sale' book only for 'The Hacker News' readers, so get your copy today. Stay Tuned!
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Son of a Baptist Minister, 28-year-old British man named Lauri Love has been charged with hacking into the computer systems of the US army, NASA and other federal agencies.
He was arrested Friday at his home in Stradishall, England by the National Crime Agency and according to the indictment alleges Love and his unnamed co-conspirators hacked into thousands of computer systems between October 2012 and October 2013. The indictment does not accuse Love of selling information or doing anything else with it for financial gain.
His father Alexander Love, 60, a Baptist minister, works as a chaplain at HMP Highpoint North. His mother Sirkka-Liisa Love, 59, also works at the jail as a teacher.
He is charged with one count of accessing a U.S. Department or agency computer without authorization and one count of conspiracy. The government said the purpose was to disrupt the operations and infrastructure of the federal government. They stole data on more than 5,000 individuals, as well as information on government budgets and procurement processes.
Love is alleged to have used the online monikers "nsh", "route", and "peace" to plot attacks from his home with three unnamed conspirators in Australia and Sweden and US authorities declined to discuss whether they had been arrested or will be arrested and extradited to the US.
"You have no idea how much we can fuck with the US government if we wanted to," Love told a hacking colleague in one exchange over Internet relay chat, prosecutors alleged. "This... Stuff is really sensitive. It's basically every piece of information you'd need to do full identity theft on any employee or contractor".
Love could be extradited to the US, where if convicted he faces up to ten years in prison and a fine for twice the damage caused. Gary McKinnon's mother, Janis Sharp, accused US authorities of targeting young British geeks, said "They are just young geeks sitting in their bedrooms; they're not murderers, they're not terrorists, they're not selling secrets, they're just searching for information,".
He has been released on bail until February and could face a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count.
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London (CNN)UK opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn has set out his plan to stop Boris Johnson from leading the country into what many fear could be a catastrophic 'no-deal' Brexit.The Labour Party leader has announced he will begin consideration of a vote of no confidence in Johnson's government "at the earliest opportunity" and seek to form a "strictly time-limited" caretaker government, in a letter sent Wednesday to leaders of other UK parties and senior backbenchers in Parliament in the hope of rallying their support.Corbyn did not specify a date for a no confidence vote, however it would have to be after parliament returns from summer recess on September 3 and before the current Brexit deadline of October 31. No-deal Brexit is now effectively the default, senior UK minister saysPrime Minister Boris Johnson has a parliamentary majority of one. This makes him vulnerable to losing a vote of no confidence. And while bringing down his government wouldn't automatically stop a no-deal Brexit, it could trigger a series of events that leads to him requesting a Brexit extension.If the vote of no confidence is successful, Corbyn says in the letter that he would then ask permission from the House of Commons to form a "strictly time-limited" caretaker government with the aim of calling a general election "and securing the necessary extension of Article 50 to do so".Read MoreCorbyn promises that -- in the case of a general election -- Labour would offer the public a second chance of voting on whether to leave the European Union at all. He says one of the options on the ballot would be to remain in the EU.This is in stark contrast to Johnson's "do or die" policy of leaving the EU by October 31."This government has no mandate for No Deal, and the 2016 EU referendum provided no mandate for No Deal," Corbyn writes.Brexit is becoming the nightmare business has long fearedThe letter -- seen by CNN - is addressed to Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson, Plaid Cymru Westminster leader Liz Saville Roberts, SNP Westminster Group leader Ian Blackford, and Green Party leader Caroline Lucas.Swinson has signaled the Liberal Democrats would consider backing Labour to stop Brexit. "Working with other parties is the only way to stop Boris, and stop Brexit," Swinson tweeted Tuesday, in response to a call from Labour's deputy leader Tom Watson for his party to work with the Lib Dems to stop a no-deal Brexit.Swinson and Watson also appeared together at an event Tuesday, where they discussed stopping a no-deal Brexit with young people. "We should work together to solve Brexit, to stop Boris Johnson and his anti-democratic attempts to crash out and maybe give us a general election during the middle of that," Watson said. "I think we've got the good will and those relationships to make that work positively because our country is facing a crisis," Swinson added.The letter also addresses Conservative pro-Remainers Dominic Grieve and Oliver Letwin, plus Independent Nick Boles -- who quit the Conservative party after his plan for a softer Brexit was defeated in parliament. Former Conservative cabinet minister Caroline Spelman, who has campaigned against a no-deal Brexit, was also sent the letter. Boris Johnson could be the last prime minister of the United KingdomCorbyn says he would welcome the chance to discuss his proposals with them, which he hopes "can halt the serious threat of No Deal, end the uncertainty and disarray, and allow the public to decide the best way ahead for our country.""Jeremy Corbyn wants to cancel the referendum and argue about Brexit for years. I am committed to leading our country forward and getting Britain out of the EU by October 31st," Johnson tweeted Wednesday.He also spoke about no-deal Brexit in a Facebook live video from Downing Street Wednesday, saying: "Our European friends are not moving in their willingness to compromise, they're not compromising at all on the Withdrawal Agreement even though it's been thrown out three times, they're sticking to every letter, every comma of the withdrawal agreement -- including the backstop -- because they still think Brexit can be blocked in Parliament."And so the awful thing is, the longer that goes on the more likely we will be forced to leave with a no-deal Brexit, that's not what I want," he warned.Since taking office, Johnson has brought many hardline Brexiteers into his cabinet and onto his team of advisors, and in the past few weeks, no deal has gone from something barely anyone believed could happen to arguably the most likely outcome.Should Parliament topple the government, it becomes very likely that Johnson would have to call a general election. When that election would be has become one of the most talked-about issues in Britain and in Brussels. Some think that Johnson would call for an election after the Brexit date, meaning in theory that he can run the clock down to a no-deal Brexit with nothing in his way.If no-deal really is as catastrophic as some have predicted, then it's hard to see how that would help Johnson during an election campaign. At that point, he would own no-deal.If he loses a confidence vote, however, Johnson could theoretically play another card. He could request an extension, then immediately unleash hell on the people who made him do it -- the majority of Parliament who do not want to leave without a deal. That could turn a general election into a fight between the people who "stole" Brexit and the man who, with a bigger majority in Parliament, would finally get the job done.Should that happen and should Johnson win a parliamentary majority, then expect to see the language harden. Johnson will have a mandate to deliver a no-deal Brexit and he will have the majority to do it. He will probably revert to his plan of trying to scare Brussels into making concessions.
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London (CNN)Belgian footballer Vincent Kompany has said he will leave Manchester City, just one day after Saturday's 6-0 FA Cup final win over Watford. "The defender has decided to call time on his 11-year association with the Club having won four Premier League titles, two FA Cups, four League Cups and two Community Shields," Manchester City wrote on its website.Manchester City makes history with victory in FA Cup finalThe announcement on Sunday came after an emotional day for the club as City became the first men's team in history to win the English domestic treble.Earlier this month Kompany helped his club power toward the Premier League title with a stunning goal against Leicester. The captain leaves after 360 appearances and 20 goals, as one of Manchester City's greatest-ever players.For the next three seasons, the 33-year-old will take up the role of player-manager at boyhood Belgian club RSC Anderlecht.Read MoreAnnouncing his departure, Kompany said: "As overwhelming as it is, the time has come for me to go. And what a season to bow out. I feel nothing but gratefulness. I am grateful to all those who supported me on a special journey, at a very special club. I remember the first day, as clear as I see the last. I remember the boundless kindness I received from the people of Manchester."I will never forget how all Man City supporters remained loyal to me in good times and especially bad times. Against the odds you have always backed me and inspired me to never give up. Vincent Kompany: Football's family man says giving back is part of his DNA"Sheikh Mansour changed my life and that of all the City fans around the world, for that I am forever grateful. A blue nation has arisen and challenged the established order of things, I find that awesome."I cherish the counsel and leadership of a good human being, Khaldoon Al Mubarak. Man City could not be in better hands."City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak paid tribute to Kompany on Sunday: "There have been many important contributors to Manchester City's renaissance, but arguably none are more important than Vincent Kompany."He defines the essence of the club. For a decade he has been the lifeblood, the soul, and beating heart of a supremely talented squad."
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Story highlights Kerry and Lavrov discuss the situation in eastern Ukraine in two phone conversationsU.S. ambassador tweets pictures he says show Russian buildup"We are always vigilant," Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel says of Russia's movesUkraine's acting interior minister says unrest in eastern region will be resolved in 48 hoursUkrainian acting Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said Wednesday that the separatist protests in Ukraine's eastern region would be resolved within 48 hours -- either through negotiations or the use of force.At the same time, Russia insisted that the presence of its troops just over the border was no reason to worry.The United States and others have accused Russia of fomenting the separatist unrest as a pretext for military intervention.Using classified and commercial satellite imagery, the United States estimates there are up to 40,000 Russian troops on the border with eastern Ukraine. NATO has also warned of a major troop buildup.The U.S. ambassador in Kiev, Geoffrey Pyatt, posted photos via Twitter on Wednesday to illustrate the U.S. estimates. The photos depict what is supposedly a field outside the Russian city of Rostov -- empty in October, filled with troops and armored vehicles on April 2.A U.S. official with direct knowledge of the matter told CNN those photos "are consistent" with classified imagery.Washington is sharing some information with the Ukrainians, but not highly classified intelligence, the official said. Ukraine was aligned with Moscow until a month ago, and it is believed Ukraine's security services are still penetrated by the Russians, the official said.But Russia's Foreign Ministry said Wednesday that Ukraine and the United States have "no reason for concern" about the presence of Russian forces, which it says are on military exercises."Russia has repeatedly stated that it does not conduct unusual or unplanned activities which are militarily significant on its territory near the border with Ukraine," the Foreign Ministry said in a prepared statement.JUST WATCHEDLocals: No sign of Russian army on borderReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHLocals: No sign of Russian army on border 02:20JUST WATCHEDConflicting reports of hostage situation ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHConflicting reports of hostage situation 04:17JUST WATCHEDPutin keeping options open in UkraineReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHPutin keeping options open in Ukraine 05:46 Photos: Photos: Crisis in Ukraine Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A man looks at a bullet shell next to a destroyed car after a gunfight between pro-Russian militiamen and Ukrainian forces in Karlivka, Ukraine, on Friday, May 23. Much of Ukraine's unrest has been centered in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, where separatists have claimed independence from the government in Kiev.Hide Caption 1 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – The body of a pro-Ukrainian militia fighter lies along a road in Karlivka on May 23.Hide Caption 2 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A woman walks past a destroyed car after Ukrainian government forces fired mortar shells during clashes with pro-Russian forces in Slovyansk, Ukraine, on May 23.Hide Caption 3 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A pro-Russian activist carries a ballot box away from a polling station in Donetsk, Ukraine, as he prepares to smash it on May 23.Hide Caption 4 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Local citizens help support a woman at a rally protesting shelling by Ukrainian government forces in the village of Semyonovka, Ukraine, on Thursday, May 22.Hide Caption 5 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Bodies covered with blankets lie in a field near the village of Blahodatne, Ukraine, on May 22, as a Ukrainian soldier smokes next to his armored infantry vehicle.Hide Caption 6 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A Ukrainian soldier rests inside an armored personnel carrier at a checkpoint near Slovyansk on Wednesday, May 21. Hide Caption 7 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Yekaterina Len cries outside her home after it was hit by mortar shells during fighting between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian soldiers in Slovyansk on Tuesday, May 20. Hide Caption 8 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A Ukrainian soldier stands guard on the road from Izium, Ukraine, to Slovyansk on Monday, May 19.Hide Caption 9 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A new recruit gets his hair cut at a training camp for the Donbass Battalion, a pro-Ukrainian militia, in the Dnipropetrovsk region of Ukraine on May 19.Hide Caption 10 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian armed militants guard a checkpoint in Slovyansk on May 19, blocking a major highway to Kharkiv.Hide Caption 11 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian militants detain three men on Sunday, May 18, in Kramatorsk, Ukraine. The men are suspected of spying for the Ukrainian government.Hide Caption 12 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A bodyguard of insurgent leader Denis Pushilin stands in front of a statue of Russian revolutionary Vladimir Lenin during a pro-Russia rally in Donetsk on May 18.Hide Caption 13 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian militants guard a checkpoint outside Slovyansk on Saturday, May 17.Hide Caption 14 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Employees of the Ukrainian company Metinvest clear away debris in a government building in Mariupol, Ukraine, on Friday, May 16, after pro-Russian separatists relinquished their hold on it. Hide Caption 15 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian activists argue in Mariupol about how to thwart the upcoming Ukrainian presidential elections.Hide Caption 16 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian gunmen take up positions to fight Ukrainian national troops at a checkpoint outside Slovyansk on Thursday, May 15.Hide Caption 17 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A mortar shell sticks out of the ground at a checkpoint near Slovyansk on May 15.Hide Caption 18 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A man surveys the damage to his home after a mine exploded during an exchange of fire between pro-Russian militants and government troops outside Slovyansk on May 15.Hide Caption 19 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A man examines ballots at a printing house in Kiev, Ukraine, on Wednesday, May 14. The ballots will be used in early presidential voting on May 25.Hide Caption 20 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – People collect mortar shells in front of a burnt-out Ukrainian military vehicle near Oktyabrskoe, Ukraine, on May 14.Hide Caption 21 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Two men collect parts of a Ukrainian armored personnel carrier, destroyed May 14 in what the Ukrainian Defense Ministry called a terrorist attack near Kramatorsk.Hide Caption 22 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A member of a "self-defense" squad smashes a slot machine with a sledgehammer Monday, May 12, at an illegal club in Slovyansk.Hide Caption 23 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – People celebrate with fireworks in Donetsk on May 12 as separatists declared independence for the Donetsk region.Hide Caption 24 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Roman Lyagin, a member of a rebel election commission, shows referendum results to journalists at a May 12 news conference in Donetsk. Pro-Russian separatists staged the referendum asking residents in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions whether they should declare independence from Ukraine. Hide Caption 25 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – An armed pro-Russian separatist takes up a position near Slovyansk on May 12.Hide Caption 26 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A man with a "self-defense" unit checks people's identification in Slovyansk on Sunday, May 11. Hide Caption 27 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A person leaves a voting booth in Luhansk, Ukraine, on May 11. The Donetsk and Luhansk regions of eastern Ukraine voted on controversial referendums to declare independence from the government in Kiev. Acting Ukrainian President Oleksandr Turchynov called the vote "propagandist farce."Hide Caption 28 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Two men react after Ukrainian national guardsmen open fire on a crowd outside a town hall in Krasnoarmiysk, Ukraine, on May 11.Hide Caption 29 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A Ukrainian woman votes at a polling station in Donetsk on May 11. Hide Caption 30 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainians line up to cast their votes at a polling station in Donetsk on May 11.Hide Caption 31 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A voter casts her ballot in eastern Ukraine's independence referendum in Slovyansk on May 11.Hide Caption 32 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – An armed pro-Russian man sits below a flag of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic at the barricades on a road leading into Slovyansk on May 11. Hide Caption 33 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Black smoke billows from burning tires used to prevent government troops' armored personnel carriers from passing through in Mariupol on Saturday, May 10. Hide Caption 34 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – The mother of Dmitriy Nikityuk, who died in a fire at a trade union building during riots in Odessa, Ukraine, cries next to his coffin during his funeral on Thursday, May 8. Hide Caption 35 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A Ukrainian soldier keeps guard at a checkpoint near Slovyansk on May 8.Hide Caption 36 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A pro-Russian activist stands with a Russian national flag outside the regional Interior Ministry building in Luhansk on Wednesday, May 7.Hide Caption 37 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, right, inspects an armored personnel carrier in Slovyansk on May 7.Hide Caption 38 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – An armed pro-Russian separatist takes a position by the railway lines near Slovyansk on Tuesday, May 6.Hide Caption 39 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A relative mourns by the body of 17-year-old Vadim Papura during a service in Odessa on May 6. Papura died after jumping out of a burning trade union building during riots on May 2.Hide Caption 40 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A pro-Russian gunman holds his weapon while guarding the local administration building in Slovyansk on May 6.Hide Caption 41 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian supporters lead blindfolded men in front of the regional administration building in Donetsk on Monday, May 5.Hide Caption 42 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian policemen check documents at a checkpoint near the northeastern city of Izium on May 5.Hide Caption 43 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian soldiers stand at a checkpoint near Slovyansk on May 5.Hide Caption 44 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian Cossacks sit outside the regional administration building in Donetsk on May 5.Hide Caption 45 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian militants who were arrested during a Ukrainian unity rally are greeted on Sunday, May 4, after being freed by police in Odessa. The men released Sunday had been detained after bloody clashes in Odessa, which ended in a deadly blaze. Forty-six people were killed in the bloodshed.Hide Caption 46 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A pro-Russian militant reacts after being freed on May 4 in Odessa. Hide Caption 47 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian militants clash with police as they storm the police station in Odessa on May 4.Hide Caption 48 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – An Orthodox priest, in front of the administration building in Donetsk, blesses a pro-Russian activist May 4 as people gather to honor the memory of fallen comrades in Odessa.Hide Caption 49 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Red carnations are left inside the burned trade union building in Odessa on May 4. Flowers, candles and photos of the dead piled up outside the charred building, a day after brutal clashes and the fire claimed 46 lives.Hide Caption 50 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian protesters light candles in Donetsk on Saturday, May 3, to honor the memory of fallen comrades in Odessa.Hide Caption 51 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A woman cries in front of the burned trade union building in Odessa on May 3.Hide Caption 52 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A man walks past burning tires near Kramatorsk on May 3.Hide Caption 53 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian activists beat a pro-Ukraine supporter trying to save the Ukrainian flag that was removed from a flagpole outside the burned trade union building in Odessa.Hide Caption 54 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian protesters gather in Donetsk to honor the memory of comrades who died in Odessa.Hide Caption 55 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A portrait of Bolshevik leader Vladimir Lenin is part of a barricade in the center of Slovyansk on May 3. The city has become the focus of an armed pro-Russian, anti-government insurgency that aspires to give the eastern regions of Ukraine full autonomy. Hide Caption 56 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A pro-Russian activist sits in front of policemen guarding the burned trade union building in Odessa on May 3.Hide Caption 57 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – People lay flowers and candles at the burned trade union building in Odessa on May 3.Hide Caption 58 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian soldiers arrive to reinforce a checkpoint that troops seized Friday, May 2, in Andreevka, a village near Slovyansk. Two helicopters were downed Friday as Ukrainian security forces tried to dislodge pro-Russian separatists from Slovyansk, Ukraine's Defense Ministry said.Hide Caption 59 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Police take cover under shields as pro-Russian activists storm the prosecutor's office in Donetsk on Thursday, May 1. Eastern Ukraine was a heartland of support for President Viktor Yanukovych, who was ousted in February.Hide Caption 60 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A pro-Russian activist is wounded after storming the prosecutor's office in Donetsk and clashing with riot police on May 1. Hide Caption 61 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian activists storm the prosecutor's office in Donetsk on May 1. Police fired tear gas and stun grenades in an effort to disperse the activists.Hide Caption 62 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – An injured Pro-Russian activist speaks with an armed protester during clashes with police in front of the regional administration building in Donetsk on May 1.Hide Caption 63 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian activists storm an administration building in the center of Luhansk on Tuesday, April 29. Hide Caption 64 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russia militants, armed with baseball bats and iron bars, hold flares as they attack people marching for national unity in Donetsk on Monday, April 28. Hide Caption 65 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Detained observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe arrive to take part in a news conference Sunday, April 27, in Slovyansk. Vyacheslav Ponomarev, the self-declared mayor of Slovyansk, referred to the observers as "prisoners of war."Hide Caption 66 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian troops stand guard behind a barricade made of sandbags at a checkpoint about 30 kilometers (20 miles) from Slovyansk on April 27.Hide Caption 67 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Relatives and friends of a man killed in a gunfight participate in his funeral ceremony in Slovyansk on Saturday, April 26.Hide Caption 68 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – U.S. troops arrive at an air force base near Siauliai Zuokniai, Lithuania, on April 26. The United States is conducting military exercises in Poland, Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania. The exercises are, in part, a response to the ongoing instability in Ukraine.Hide Caption 69 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian government troops in armored vehicles travel on a country road outside the town of Svyitohirsk in eastern Ukraine on April 26.Hide Caption 70 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russia armed militants inspect a truck near Slovyansk on Friday, April 25. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has accused the West of plotting to control Ukraine, and he said the pro-Russia insurgents in the southeast would lay down their arms only if the Ukrainian government clears out the Maidan protest camp in the capital, Kiev. Hide Caption 71 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russia militants keep records of their duty in Slovyansk on April 25.Hide Caption 72 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian troops take position near burning tires at a pro-Russian checkpoint in Slovyansk on Thursday, April 24. Hide Caption 73 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian special forces take position at an abandoned roadblock in Slovyansk on April 24.Hide Caption 74 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A Ukrainian special forces member takes position in Slovyansk.Hide Caption 75 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Cossacks carry a coffin into a church in Slovyansk on Tuesday, April 22, during a funeral for men killed in a gunfight at a checkpoint two days before.Hide Caption 76 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, left, talks with Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk during a meeting in Kiev on April 22.Hide Caption 77 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – An armed pro-Russian man stands on a street in Slovyansk on Monday, April 21.Hide Caption 78 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Demonstrators attend a pro-Russian rally outside the secret service building in Luhansk on April 21.Hide Caption 79 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Cars are burned out after an attack at a roadblock in Slovyansk on Sunday, April 20.Hide Caption 80 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A resident inspects burnt-out cars at a roadblock on April 20. Hide Caption 81 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A pro-Russian militant is seen at the roadblock near Slovyansk on April 20.Hide Caption 82 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Armed pro-Russian militants stand guard at a roadblock near Slovyansk on April 20. Hide Caption 83 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A masked man stands guard outside a regional administration building seized by pro-Russian separatists in Slovyansk on Friday, April 18. Hide Caption 84 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – People walk around barricades April 18 set up at the regional administration building that was seized earlier in Donetsk.Hide Caption 85 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks to the media after a nationally televised question-and-answer session in Moscow on Thursday, April 17. Putin denied that Russian forces are involved in the unrest in eastern Ukraine, though he did say for the first time that Russians were active in Crimea before the peninsula voted to join the country.Hide Caption 86 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian riot police officers stand guard during a pro-Ukrainian demonstration in Donetsk on April 17.Hide Caption 87 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Masked pro-Russian protesters stand guard in front of the city hall in Mariupol on April 17.Hide Caption 88 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry reaches out to shake hands with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the start of a bilateral meeting to discuss the ongoing situation in Ukraine. The meeting took place April 17 in Geneva, Switzerland.Hide Caption 89 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A masked gunman stands guard near tanks in Slovyansk on Wednesday, April 16. Hide Caption 90 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A Ukrainian helicopter flies over a column of Ukrainian Army combat vehicles on the way to Kramatorsk on April 16.Hide Caption 91 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A masked pro-Russian gunman guards combat vehicles parked in downtown Slovyansk on April 16.Hide Caption 92 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A man talks with Ukrainian soldiers as they are blocked by people on their way to Kramatorsk.Hide Caption 93 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian soldiers sit atop combat vehicles on their way to Kramatorsk.Hide Caption 94 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian Gen. Vasily Krutov is surrounded by protesters after addressing the crowd outside an airfield in Kramatorsk on Tuesday, April 15.Hide Caption 95 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian activists guard a barricade April 15 outside the regional police building that they seized in Slovyansk.Hide Caption 96 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian troops receive munitions at a field on the outskirts of Izium on April 15.Hide Caption 97 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Armed pro-Russian activists stand guard on top of a Ukrainian regional administration building in Slovyansk on Monday, April 14.Hide Caption 98 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A pro-Russian activist carries a shield during the mass storming of a police station in Horlivka, Ukraine, on April 14.Hide Caption 99 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Russian supporters attend a rally in front of the security service building occupied by pro-Russian activists in Luhansk on April 14.Hide Caption 100 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A man places a Russian flag over a police station after storming the building in Horlivka on April 14.Hide Caption 101 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Men besiege the police station in Horlivka.Hide Caption 102 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – The Horlivka police station burns on April 14.Hide Caption 103 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A Ukrainian police officer receives medical care after being attacked at the police station in Horlivka on April 14.Hide Caption 104 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian supporters beat a pro-Ukrainian activist during a rally in Kharkiv on Sunday, April 13.Hide Caption 105 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian activists escort a man outside the secret service building in Luhansk on April 13.Hide Caption 106 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian protesters guard a barricade in Slovyansk on April 13 outside a regional police building seized by armed separatists the day before.Hide Caption 107 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Armed pro-Russian activists carrying riot shields occupy a police station in Slovyansk on April 12.Hide Caption 108 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A group of pro-Russian activists warm themselves by a fire Friday, April 11, in front of a Ukrainian Security Service office in Luhansk.Hide Caption 109 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk speaks April 11 during his meeting with regional leaders in Donetsk. Yatsenyuk flew into Donetsk, where pro-Russian separatists occupied the regional administration building and called for a referendum.Hide Caption 110 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian young men look over the fence of a military recruitment office in Donetsk on Thursday, April 10.Hide Caption 111 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Armed pro-Russian protesters occupy the Security Service building in Luhansk on April 10.Hide Caption 112 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Members of the self-proclaimed government the "Donetsk Republic" vote April 10 during a meeting at the seized regional administration building in Donetsk.Hide Caption 113 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian lawmakers from different parties scuffle during a Parliament session in Kiev on Tuesday, April 8.Hide Caption 114 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Workers clean up on April 8 after pro-Russian separatists and police clashed overnight in Kharkiv.Hide Caption 115 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian protesters burn tires near a regional administration building in Kharkiv after police cleared the building on Monday, April 7.Hide Caption 116 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A masked man stands on top of a barricade at the regional administration building in Donetsk on April 7.Hide Caption 117 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Protesters wave a Russian flag as they storm the regional administration building in Donetsk on Sunday, April 6. Protesters seized state buildings in several east Ukrainian cities, prompting accusations from Kiev that Moscow is trying to "dismember" the country.Hide Caption 118 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian protesters clash with police as they try to occupy a regional administration building in Donetsk on April 6. Hide Caption 119 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian activists hold a rally in front of a Ukrainian Security Service office in Luhansk on April 6. Hide Caption 120 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A young demonstrator with his mouth covered by a Russian flag attends a pro-Russia rally outside the regional government administration building in Donetsk on Saturday, April 5. Hide Caption 121 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A Ukrainian soldier guards a road not far from Prokhody, a village near the Russian border, on April 5. Ukrainian and Western officials have voiced alarm about Russia's reported military buildup on Ukraine's eastern border. Hide Caption 122 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian cadets at the Higher Naval School embrace a friend who has decided to stay in the school during a departure ceremony in Sevastopol, Crimea, on Friday, April 4. Some 120 cadets who refused to take Russian citizenship left the school to return to Ukraine.Hide Caption 123 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Soviet military veterans take part in a flower-laying ceremony at the Soviet-era World War II memorial in Sevastopol on Thursday, April 3. Hide Caption 124 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian soldiers conduct a training session on the Desna military shooting range northeast of Kiev on Wednesday, April 2. Hide Caption 125 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Russian soldiers prepare for diving training in front of a Tarantul-III class missile boat Tuesday, April 1, in Sevastopol.Hide Caption 126 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – People pass by barricades near the Dnipro Hotel in Kiev on April 1. Hide Caption 127 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – People walk past a train loaded with Russian tanks Monday, March 31, in the Gvardeyskoe railway station near Simferopol, Crimea.Hide Caption 128 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A Russian solder sits in a tank at the Ostryakovo railway station, not far from Simferopol on March 31.Hide Caption 129 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev speaks about the economic development of Crimea during a meeting March 31 in Simferopol.Hide Caption 130 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Members of the Ukrainian National Guard take part in military exercises on a shooting range near Kiev on March 31.Hide Caption 131 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A woman cries Sunday, March 30, during a gathering to honor those who were killed during protests in Kiev's Independence Square.Hide Caption 132 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A woman and child walk past a line of police officers during a rally in Kharkiv on March 30.Hide Caption 133 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian soldiers take part in a training exercise at a military base in Donetsk on Saturday, March 29.Hide Caption 134 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Demonstrators protest Friday, March 28, in Kiev, displaying police vehicles they seized during earlier clashes with authorities.Hide Caption 135 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Members of the Right Sector group block the Ukrainian parliament building in Kiev on Thursday, March 27. Activists called for Interior Minister Arsen Avakov to step down after the recent killing of radical nationalist leader Oleksandr Muzychko, who died during a police operation to detain him. Muzychko and the Right Sector are credited with playing a lead role in the protests that toppled Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovych.Hide Caption 136 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian tanks are transported from their base in Perevalne, Crimea, on Wednesday, March 26. After Russian troops seized most of Ukraine's bases in Crimea, interim Ukrainian President Oleksandr Turchynov ordered the withdrawal of armed forces from the Black Sea peninsula, citing Russian threats to the lives of military staff and their families.Hide Caption 137 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian marines wave as they leave a base in Feodosia, Crimea, on Tuesday, March 25. Hide Caption 138 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Russian sailors stand on the deck of the corvette ship Suzdalets in the bay of Sevastopol on March 25.Hide Caption 139 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian militia members remove a resident as Russian troops assault the Belbek air base, outside Sevastopol, on Saturday, March 22. After its annexation of Crimea, Russian forces have consolidated their control of the region.Hide Caption 140 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Soldiers in unmarked uniforms sit atop an armored personnel carrier at the gate of the Belbek air base on March 22. Hide Caption 141 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A Russian sailor holds the Russian Navy's St. Andrew's flag while standing on the bow of the surrendered Ukrainian submarine Zaporozhye on March 22 in Sevastopol.Hide Caption 142 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Russian President Vladimir Putin signs the final decree completing the annexation of Crimea on Friday, March 21, as Upper House Speaker Valentina Matviyenko, left, and State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin watch. Hide Caption 143 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A Ukrainian serviceman leaves a Ukrainian military unit that Russian soldiers took control of in Perevalne on March 21.Hide Caption 144 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian border guards run during training at a military camp in Alekseyevka, Ukraine, on March 21.Hide Caption 145 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Russian soldiers patrol the area surrounding a Ukrainian military unit in Perevalne on Thursday, March 20.Hide Caption 146 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian protesters remove the gate to the Ukrainian navy headquarters as Russian troops stand guard in Sevastopol on Wednesday, March 19.Hide Caption 147 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russian forces walk inside the Ukrainian navy headquarters in Sevastopol on March 19.Hide Caption 148 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A member of pro-Russian forces takes down a Ukrainian flag at the Ukrainian navy headquarters in Sevastopol on March 19. Hide Caption 149 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Alexander Vitko, chief of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, leaves the Ukrainian navy headquarters in Sevastopol after pro-Russian forces took it over on March 19.Hide Caption 150 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A Russian flag waves as workers install a new sign on a parliament building in Simferopol, Crimea's capital, on March 19.Hide Caption 151 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Russian military personnel surround a Ukrainian military base in Perevalne on March 19.Hide Caption 152 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Nameplates on the front of the Crimean parliament building get removed Tuesday, March 18, in Simferopol.Hide Caption 153 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – From left, Crimean Prime Minister Sergey Aksyonov; Vladimir Konstantinov, speaker of the Crimean parliament; Russian President Vladimir Putin; and Alexei Chaly, the new de facto mayor of Sevastopol, join hands in Moscow on March 18 after signing a treaty to make Crimea part of Russia.Hide Caption 154 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Demonstrators hold a Crimean flag at Lenin Square in Simferopol on March 18.Hide Caption 155 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian soldiers stand guard at a checkpoint near Strilkove, Ukraine, close to Crimea on Monday, March 17.Hide Caption 156 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Former boxer and Ukrainian politician Vitali Klitschko addresses reporters in Kiev on March 17.Hide Caption 157 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Ukrainian troops stand guard in front of the Ukrainian Parliament building in Kiev on March 17.Hide Caption 158 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A Ukrainian man applies for the National Guard at a mobile recruitment center in Kiev on March 17.Hide Caption 159 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Civilians walk past riot police in Simferopol on March 17.Hide Caption 160 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A Ukrainian soldier stands on top of an armored vehicle at a military camp near the village of Michurino, Ukraine, on March 17.Hide Caption 161 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Policemen stand guard outside the regional state administration building in Donetsk during a rally by pro-Russia activists March 17.Hide Caption 162 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Armed soldiers stand guard outside a Ukrainian military base in Perevalne on March 17.Hide Caption 163 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A man holds a Crimean flag as he stands in front of the Crimean parliament building in Simferopol on March 17.Hide Caption 164 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Crimeans holding Russian flags celebrate in front of the parliament building in Simferopol on Sunday, March 16.Hide Caption 165 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A Ukrainian police officer tries to shield himself from a road block thrown by pro-Russia supporters in Kharkiv on March 16.Hide Caption 166 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – Pro-Russia demonstrators storm the prosecutor general's office during a rally in Donetsk on March 16.Hide Caption 167 of 168 Photos: Photos: Crisis in UkraineCrisis in Ukraine – A woman leaves a voting booth in Sevastopol on March 16. See the crisis in Ukraine before Crimea votedHide Caption 168 of 168It added that accusations that Russia was building up its armed forces were "groundless."Asked if he considered the threat of a Russian advance into Ukraine more likely now than last week, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel told CNN's Jim Sciutto, "We are always vigilant. We are always looking at the options that we need to take."Hagel said Gen. Philip Breedlove, NATO's supreme allied commander in Europe, has been asked to develop "new and additional measures and options."Meanwhile, the separatist protests in eastern Ukraine have entered their fourth day. Pro-Russian protesters seized government buildings in the cities of Donetsk, Luhansk and Kharkiv on Sunday.Rebels who occupied Donetsk's regional government building a day later -- declaring a "people's republic" and calling for a referendum on secession from Ukraine to be held by May 11 -- remained in control of the building Wednesday, holed up behind substantial makeshift barricades.In Kharkiv, more than 70 people were detained Tuesday in what Ukrainian authorities said was an anti-terrorism operation, as security forces cleared a government building of protesters.The 48-hour deadline set by Avakov to end the crisis may escalate the tensions in Ukraine's eastern region."There are two opposite ways for resolving this conflict -- a political dialogue and the heavy-handed approach. We are ready for both," he said, according to official news agency Ukrinform.On Tuesday, Moscow warned that any use of force to crack down on protests in the region, which borders Russia, could lead to civil war and called for "the immediate cessation of any military preparations."Opinion: Turning Crimea into 'Putinland'?Hostage reportsThere were conflicting reports late Tuesday over whether demonstrators who seized control of a Security Service of Ukraine building in Luhansk took hostages. An anti-terrorism unit outside the building said the pro-Russian demonstrators were holding hostages, Victoria Syumar, a Security Service spokeswoman, and Yarema Duh, spokesman for the National Security and Defense Council, told CNN.JUST WATCHEDZakaria: Russia's trying to create chaosReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHZakaria: Russia's trying to create chaos 04:54JUST WATCHEDJournalist reflects on Kiev's revolutionReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHJournalist reflects on Kiev's revolution 02:39JUST WATCHEDDonetsk separatists remain defiantReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHDonetsk separatists remain defiant 02:52Fifty-one people were released from the building early Wednesday morning, the Security Service said in a statement.But pro-Russian demonstrators holed up in the building denied having taken anyone hostage, according to Reuters reports.Ukrainian interim President Oleksandr Turchynov reiterated Tuesday that he would treat pro-Russian separatists who have seized buildings in the country's east as "terrorists" who will be prosecuted with the full force of the law.His remarks came ahead of a vote in parliament that approved legislation outlawing groups and individuals who call for separatism. Of the 450 members of the Ukrainian parliament, 230 voted in favor of the bill.Kerry: 'Contrived pretext' for interventionU.S. Secretary of State John Kerry discussed the situation in eastern Ukraine twice on the phone Wednesday with his Russian counterpart, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.The two officials talked about "the importance of resolving the security situation in key cities in eastern Ukraine peacefully and through dialogue, and they both rejected the use of force to obtain political objectives," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said. Kerry said Tuesday that Russian forces and special agents were behind what he called the most-recent "chaos" in eastern Ukraine.He described the developments as "more than deeply disturbing" and said they amounted to what could be a "contrived pretext for military intervention just as we saw in Crimea."Echoing that view, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski told CNN's "Amanpour" show that Russia is financing subversion in eastern Ukraine using the pretext of ethnic tensions."What's happening in Ukraine is unacceptable," he said. "A more powerful nation is first taking a province away from a less powerful country and now financing subversion using the pretext of ethnic problems, which are nonexistent."Kerry will meet Monday with his Russian, Ukrainian and European Union counterparts to discuss efforts to de-escalate the crisis, according to a statement from EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton.Ashton "calls against any further destabilization of Ukraine, whether from the inside or the outside," the statement said. German Chancellor Angela Merkel told her country's parliament Wednesday that "the situation in the Ukraine remains difficult ... and unfortunately in many places it is not clear how Russia helps the de-escalation of the situation. "Therefore we will continue to do what we've been doing: on the one hand pursue a path of dialogue, but on the other hand make clear that in our view Ukraine has a right to its own development. We demand this. Ukraine must decide its own destiny, and in this we will help Ukraine."Kerry warned of increased sanctions targeting Russia's banking, energy, mining and arms sectors if the Russians "cross over" into eastern Ukraine. Current sanctions target individuals over Russia's annexation of Ukraine's southeastern Crimean Peninsula last month.U.S. Navy ship headed for Black SeaSimilar pattern seen in revoltsU.S. officials told CNN on Tuesday that one reason the United States believes Russia may have orchestrated the pro-Russian demonstrations in Donetsk, Luhansk and Kharkiv is that the disturbances and violence had a similar pattern and similar separatist motivations, even though the cities are at significant distances from one another. U.S. officials have long noted that these three cities are specific areas that Moscow has been trying to influence. Although Ukrainian forces have been able to regain control for now, the U.S. assessment is that Russia may be trying to fabricate a pretext for military action using some of the tens of thousands of troops still massed on the border, several U.S. officials told CNN. Even after weeks of tension and uncertainty, the United States does not know what political calculation Russian President Vladimir Putin might make in deciding whether or not to move his troops into Ukraine, officials said. The belief is the decision will be made by Putin with little or no influence from his top military and foreign policy advisers. There is also a U.S. view that Putin may leave the troops on the border for some time to come to intimidate Ukraine's government, American officials said. Those troops remain positioned so close, and are so heavily armed, that the United States and NATO calculate they could "roll across" eastern Ukraine in three to five days, one official said.Russia has said it does not intend to invade eastern Ukraine, although it says it reserves the right to intervene to protect ethnic Russians. READ: Russia warns of civil war if Ukraine uses force to quell eastern revoltsREAD: We want out of Ukraine: Donetsk protesters dig in at government buildingREAD: Amanpour Blog: Russia 'financing subversion' in Ukraine, Poland claims
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(CNN)As the coronavirus pandemic spreads across Europe and the United States, a global scramble for medical equipment such as respirator masks and gloves is underway. Several countries have accused the United States of trying to hijack their orders, but the details of who may have done what to whom are still murky.In France they are calling it the "guerre des masques" -- the war of the masks, and on Friday German officials also made allegations against the United States. Andreas Geisel, a senior official in the state of Berlin, said that the US had committed an act of "modern piracy," alleging that a consignment of 200,000 respirator masks destined for the Berlin police had been diverted to the US while in transit in Bangkok.Related storiesCan you use apps to track coronavirus?Asia may have been right about face masksHow the coronavirus could impact gender equalityUpdates: Coronavirus deaths top 60,000 globally "This is not how you deal with transatlantic partners," Geisel said, adding that "even in times of global crisis, no wild west methods should be used."Read MoreA German media report said the company involved in the Berlin order was US manufacturer 3M. But 3M told CNN Friday that the company "has no evidence to suggest 3M products have been seized. 3M has no record of any order of respirators from China for the Berlin police."The Berlin police told CNN they could not confirm whether an order had been placed with 3M. CNN has reached out to the White House and US Department of Health and Human Services for comment.The US government's invocation of the Defense Production Act has made life difficult for some suppliers with foreign contracts. The 1950 law gives the government sweeping powers during emergencies to direct industrial production. President Donald Trump criticized 3M for seeking to export protective equipment, tweeting Thursday: "We hit 3M hard today after seeing what they were doing with their Masks. 'P Act' all the way. Big surprise to many in government as to what they were doing - will have a big price to pay!"Trump announces new face mask recommendations after heated internal debateOn Friday 3M responded: "Ceasing all export of respirators produced in the United States would likely cause other countries to retaliate and do the same, as some have already done."A senior White House official denied the administration was blocking 3M from sending shipments of respirators to Latin America and Canada.As stockpiles dwindle and countries embark on what one French official called a "global treasure hunt," governments are reluctant to allow protective and other equipment to leave their shores. Many governments say the prices being offered and demanded for personal protective equipment (PPE) are exorbitant.On Friday, Spanish Foreign Minister Arancha González Laya said an order for ventilators that had already been paid for had been impounded in Turkey."There is a shipment of ventilators that for now are not going to leave Turkey because the Turkish government understands that it is a priority for the treatment of its patients in Turkey," she said. "[What] they do guarantee is that, within a reasonable period of time, within a few weeks, they will make that material available to Spain again," González Laya added. CNN has requested comment from the Turkish government. Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWorkers at the Inhauma cemetery in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, carry the coffin containing the remains of 89-year-old Irodina Pinto Ribeiro on Friday, June 18, 2021. Brazil has now marked 500,000 deaths from Covid-19 -- the second-highest death toll in the world. Hide Caption 1 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA demonstrator holds a sign that reads "Bolsonaro out" in a protest against Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's administration on June 19, 2021 in Rio de Janeiro. Many are angry at his handling of the Covid-19 crisis as the country marks 500,000 deaths from the virus.Hide Caption 2 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicJeffrey Shiau, a volunteer from the crowd, spits water into the mouth of Sam Kaufman, a performer from the Human Fountains, during a "reopening party" in Los Angeles on Tuesday, June 15. California lifted most of its Covid-19 restrictions Tuesday as part of a grand reopening in which the state ended capacity limits, physical distancing and — at least for those vaccinated — mask requirements.Hide Caption 3 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople watch fireworks in front of the Statue of Liberty after the state of New York lifted most of its Covid-19 restrictions on Tuesday, June 15. Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that 70% of adults in New York had received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine.Hide Caption 4 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicExhausted grave diggers rest between funerals at a cemetery designated for Covid-19 victims in Bandung, Indonesia, on Tuesday, June 15.Hide Caption 5 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThis aerial photo, taken on Sunday, June 13, shows a graduation ceremony at Central China Normal University. The ceremony in Wuhan, China, also included graduates who could not attend last year because of the Covid-19 pandemic.Hide Caption 6 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicDr. Brajpal Singh Tyagi, left, performs surgery to remove mucormycosis, a rare and potentially deadly infection also known as black fungus, from a patient in Ghaziabad, India, on June 1. In the past few weeks, thousands of black fungus cases have been reported across the country, with hundreds hospitalized and dozens dead. Many of those being infected are coronavirus patients or those who have recently recovered from Covid-19 and have weakened immune systems. Hide Caption 7 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA Covid-19 victim is laid to rest in a graveyard in Comas, Peru, on June 1. Peru has more than doubled its official death toll from the Covid-19 pandemic following a government review of the figures. That leaves the country with the world's highest coronavirus-related death rate per capita.Hide Caption 8 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicTwo moviegoers watch a film at the Kiggins Theatre in Vancouver, Washington, on May 14. Many places in the United States are starting to reopen and get back to some sort of normal as more people get vaccinated.Hide Caption 9 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople ride on a wave swinger at Chicago's Navy Pier on May 14. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently revised its Covid-19 guidelines, saying it's safe for fully vaccinated people to remove their face masks in most settings.Hide Caption 10 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicGuests are seen at the reopening of The Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, which held a concert for health care workers, first responders and essential workers.Hide Caption 11 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicFamily members look on as Jack Frilingos, 12, receives a Covid-19 vaccine in Decatur, Georgia, on May 11. It was a day after the US Food and Drug Administration authorized Pfizer's vaccine for the 12-15 age group.Hide Caption 12 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople in protective suits cremate the bodies of Covid-19 victims while others work to extend a crematorium in Kathmandu, Nepal, on May 5. Covid-19 cases are skyrocketing in Nepal, resembling a similar outbreak in neighboring India.Hide Caption 13 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHealth workers carry signs while participating in a protest outside a hospital in Caracas, Venezuela, on May 1. During the protest, which was part of International Workers' Day, they demanded better wages and working conditions as well as mass vaccinations against Covid-19.Hide Caption 14 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPassengers sit on the deck of the Costa Smeralda cruise ship in Savona, Italy, on May 1. The Italian cruise line Costa Cruises set sail for the first time in more than four months.Hide Caption 15 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA member of the group Rio de la Paz places a cross at Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana Beach on April 30. It was in preparation for an event marking Brazil's Covid-19 death toll, which had reached 400,000.Hide Caption 16 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCanadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau receives a Covid-19 vaccine at a pharmacy in Ottawa on April 23.Hide Caption 17 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicFuneral pyres burn in New Delhi as people wait to cremate Covid-19 victims on April 23. A second wave of Covid-19 is devastating India, killing thousands of people each day and setting world records for daily infections.Hide Caption 18 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople sit in an observation area after receiving Covid-19 vaccines at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. Appointments are no longer necessary at any of the vaccination sites run by the city.Hide Caption 19 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicRelatives of a patient who died from Covid-19 perform his last rites amid other burning pyres at a crematorium in New Delhi.Hide Caption 20 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMigrant workers line up to enter a railway station ahead of a lockdown in Mumbai, India, on April 14.Hide Caption 21 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA health worker at a charity hospital in Belém, Brazil, sings and prays for a Covid-19 patient as part of Easter celebrations on April 4.Hide Caption 22 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThis aerial photo shows an area of Mumbai, India, on April 10. Because of rising Covid-19 cases, a weekend lockdown was imposed across the entire state of Maharashtra.Hide Caption 23 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThe Rev. John Kellogg, rector of Christ Church, wears a protective mask as he distributes communion at a sunrise Easter service held at the Congressional Cemetery in Washington, DC.Hide Caption 24 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWomen in Krakow, Poland, carry Easter baskets after a food-blessing ceremony at the Basilica of St. Michael the Archangel on April 3.Hide Caption 25 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople wear face masks and observe social distancing as they attend a Good Friday church service in Berlin on April 2.Hide Caption 26 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople scatter as police fire water cannons to disperse a crowd at a park in Brussels, Belgium, on April 1. Violent clashes broke out between Brussels police and people gathering to attend a fake April Fool's Day festival that violated coronavirus restrictions.Hide Caption 27 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicYoshia Uomoto, 98, reacts as her son Mark Uomoto and niece Gail Yamada surprise her at her assisted-living facility in Seattle on March 30. Because of Covid-19 restrictions, it was their first in-person visit in a year.Hide Caption 28 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople in Barcelona, Spain, attend a concert for the rock group Love of Lesbian on March 27. Fans had to take a same-day Covid-19 test before attending the show, which was permitted by Spanish health authorities.Hide Caption 29 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA person dressed as the Easter Bunny greets children in a vehicle during a drive-thru event in Alexandria, Virginia, on March 27.Hide Caption 30 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicBeachgoers are seen in Miami on March 22. Miami Beach was forced to extend a curfew and state of emergency, possibly for several weeks, after city police struggled to control shoulder-to-shoulder crowds of spring breakers over the weekend, Mayor Dan Gelber said.Hide Caption 31 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicTercio Galdino and his wife, Alicea, wear astronaut costumes to protect themselves from Covid-19 as they walk along the Ipanema Beach in Rio de Janeiro on March 20.Hide Caption 32 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA remote-controlled robot takes a throat swab at a hospital in Tanta, Egypt, on March 20. The robot prototype is part of a project to assist physicians in testing patients for Covid-19.Hide Caption 33 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicRelatives of Tereza Santos, a Covid-19 victim, react as she is about to be buried in São Paulo, Brazil, on March 9.Hide Caption 34 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicFirst-grader Sophia Frazier does her schoolwork behind a plastic divider at Two Rivers Elementary School in Sacramento, California, on March 8.Hide Caption 35 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicDr. Mayank Amin, dressed as Superman, prepares a Covid-19 vaccine at a clinic in Collegeville, Pennsylvania, on March 7. Amin has been on a mission to vaccinate thousands of people in his rural community.Hide Caption 36 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA child tosses a surgical mask into a fire during a mask-burning event at the Idaho Statehouse in Boise on March 6. People gathered in at least 20 cities across the state to protest Covid-19 restrictions. Hide Caption 37 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCountry music legend Dolly Parton receives a Covid-19 vaccine in Nashville, Tennessee, on March 2. She posted the video to her Twitter account, urging her followers to get their shot when they can.Hide Caption 38 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicFrom left, high school students Emma Banker, Jessi McIrvin and Valerie Sanchez record their vocals in pop-up tents during a choir class in Wenatchee, Washington, on February 26. Wenatchee High School has been using the tents for its music programs during the Covid-19 pandemic.Hide Caption 39 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAnna, a resident of the Villa Sacra Famiglia Nursing Home, holds her daughter's hand in the Rome facility's "hug room" on February 24. The room allows residents and their families to touch one another while staying safe from Covid-19.Hide Caption 40 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMembers of Congress observe a moment of silence on the steps of the US Capitol on February 23. At that point, more than 500,000 Americans had lost their lives to Covid-19.Hide Caption 41 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeter Ben Embarek, a member of the World Health Organization team tasked with investigating the origins of Covid-19, receives a swab test on the balcony of a hotel in Wuhan, China, on February 3.Hide Caption 42 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicSandra Fogel watches a movie alone January 30 during the Gothenburg Film Festival in Gothenburg, Sweden. Most fans watched the movies online this year. Fogel applied to be one of the few allowed to see a movie in person.Hide Caption 43 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicBritish Prime Minister Boris Johnson reacts during a Covid-19 news conference on January 26. The virus at that point had killed 100,000 people in the United Kingdom.Hide Caption 44 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA nurse takes care of a Covid-19 patient at a hospital in Pierre-Benite, France, on January 25. Hide Caption 45 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople dance in a park in Wuhan, China, on January 23, a year after the city went into lockdown to curb the spread of Covid-19.Hide Caption 46 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA morgue attendant, right, stands next to the body of a Covid-19 victim in Pretoria, South Africa, on January 22.Hide Caption 47 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople wait to receive a Covid-19 vaccine January 20 at a vaccination center set up inside Salisbury Cathedral in Salisbury, England.Hide Caption 48 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA tennis player waits for a training session from his hotel in Melbourne on January 19. Dozens of players had to quarantine in hotels ahead of the Australian Open.Hide Caption 49 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicKelvia Andrea Goncalves, left, is supported by her aunt Vanderleia dos Reis Brasao during the burial of her mother, Andrea dos Reis Brasao, in Manaus, Brazil, on January 17. Andrea, 39, died from Covid-19.Hide Caption 50 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicChinese workers wait to receive a Covid-19 vaccine at a mass vaccination center in Beijing on January 15.Hide Caption 51 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMotorists wait in lines for Covid-19 tests outside of Los Angeles' Dodger Stadium on January 4. Hide Caption 52 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA family gathers around the television in Liverpool, England, as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson addresses the nation on January 4. Johnson reimposed a lockdown in England as a more transmissible variant of Covid-19 fueled a surge in infections and hospitalizations in the country.Hide Caption 53 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHealth-care workers celebrate the new year in the intensive care unit at the San Filippo Neri Hospital in Rome.Hide Caption 54 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMortuary workers take off their personal protective equipment after removing the body of a person who allegedly died of Covid-19 in Barcelona, Spain, on December 23.Hide Caption 55 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicUS President-elect Joe Biden receives the first dose of his Covid-19 vaccine during a live televised event in Newark, Delaware, on December 21.Hide Caption 56 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMargaret Keenan, 90, is applauded on December 8 after she became the first person in the United Kingdom to receive the Pfizer/BioNtech Covid-19 vaccine. The United Kingdom was the world's first nation to begin vaccinating its citizens with a fully vetted and authorized Covid-19 shot, a landmark moment in the coronavirus pandemic.Hide Caption 57 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA doctor tests a man for Covid-19 in Shah Alam, Malaysia, on December 10.Hide Caption 58 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicDr. Joseph Varon comforts a patient on Thanksgiving Day in the Covid-19 intensive care unit at the United Memorial Medical Center in Houston.Hide Caption 59 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAirline crew members wearing protective suits arrive at Los Angeles International Airport on November 24.Hide Caption 60 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWorkers in El Paso, Texas, move coronavirus victims from refrigerated trailers into the main morgue on November 23. El Paso County had seen a surge in coronavirus cases, and inmates were recruited to help the shorthanded, overworked staff. Hide Caption 61 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCali Hammer fist-bumps Santa, who was behind a plexiglass partition at a Cabela's store in Tilden Township, Pennsylvania, on November 20.Hide Caption 62 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicDr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, speaks during a news conference on November 19. Birx became the first official with the White House coronavirus task force to speak at a briefing while wearing a face mask.Hide Caption 63 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedical workers and patients are seen November 18 at a temporary hospital that was set up for coronavirus patients at the Krylatskoye Ice Palace in Moscow. Russia said that as of November 16, more than 33,000 people in the country had died of Covid-19. But that number is disputed by critics who say the Kremlin is underreporting the numbers.Hide Caption 64 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedical staff transport a coronavirus patient to a waiting flight at the Lyon-Bron Airport in France on November 16.Hide Caption 65 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCars line up at Los Angeles' Dodger Stadium for Covid-19 testing on November 14.Hide Caption 66 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicSpc. Demetrie Barnett of the Nevada National Guard administers a Covid-19 test to North Las Vegas City Councilwoman Pamela Goynes-Brown during a preview of a free drive-thru testing site on November 12.Hide Caption 67 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA nursing-home resident, left, speaks with her visiting daughter through a plastic screen in Castelfranco Veneto, Italy, on November 11. The plastic screen is part of a "Hug Room" that allows residents and their families to embrace each other during the coronavirus pandemic.Hide Caption 68 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA soldier waits at a window for a colleague's swab as they practice inside a rapid testing center in Liverpool, England, on November 6.Hide Caption 69 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA medical worker looks away as she provides care to a Covid-19 patient in Saint-Etienne, France, on November 6.Hide Caption 70 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA boy watches as a health worker tests someone for Covid-19 in Hyderabad, India, on October 27.Hide Caption 71 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople shop at an outside market in Berlin on October 27.Hide Caption 72 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA medic sits in an ambulance in Kommunarka, Russia, on October 27.Hide Caption 73 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCommuters ride a bus in Beijing during rush hour on October 26.Hide Caption 74 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicVolunteers at a cemetery in Yangon, Myanmar, bury someone believed to have died from Covid-19.Hide Caption 75 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople wait in a line to vote early in New York City on October 24. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the state of New York was allowing early voting for the first time.Hide Caption 76 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAn oversized surgical mask is displayed on the front of a house in San Francisco. The homeowner put it there ahead of Halloween.Hide Caption 77 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA cyclist takes pictures of a public art project set up on the DC Armory Parade Ground in Washington, DC. An estimated 240,000 flags were planted to represent lives lost to Covid-19. The display, created by local artist Susanne Brennan Firstenberg, was on display for two weeks.Hide Caption 78 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedical staff use a biocontainment stretcher to transfer a Covid-19 patient to a hospital in Varese, Italy, on October 19.Hide Caption 79 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA dog is trained to sniff out Covid-19 at a national veterinary school in Paris on October 15.Hide Caption 80 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA health worker takes a swab from a resident at a Covid-19 testing center in Qingdao, China, on October 12. The Chinese port city planned to test some 9 million people in the following days after 12 locally transmitted cases were reported.Hide Caption 81 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA health worker in Manila, Philippines, sits behind a booth October 6 during mass testing for public transportation drivers. Hide Caption 82 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAn Orthodox Jewish man takes photos of a photographer with his cell phone during protests in New York on October 6. Members of the Orthodox Jewish community protested after the state announced new coronavirus-related restrictions.Hide Caption 83 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA security guard gives hand sanitizer to students as they arrive at the Prabhat secondary school on the outskirts of Kathmandu, Nepal, on October 6.Hide Caption 84 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA man from the Mouride Brotherhood reads a book with poems written by Cheikh Amadou Bamba as he stands in line to enter the Grand Mosque of Touba in Touba, Senegal, on October 5. Hide Caption 85 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicTourists crowd together in Beijing as they move slowly on a section of the Great Wall of China on October 4. The scene would have been unthinkable just months ago.Hide Caption 86 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicEmpty chairs are displayed near the White House to represent the American lives lost to Covid-19.Hide Caption 87 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicUS President Donald Trump arrives at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, on October 2. Trump announced on Twitter earlier that day that he and first lady Melania Trump had tested positive for Covid-19. He spent the weekend at Walter Reed and received various treatments.Hide Caption 88 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA paramedic adjusts a patient's face mask outside an Athens, Greece, nursing home where dozens of people tested positive for Covid-19.Hide Caption 89 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThe Moncloa bus station in Madrid is deserted after new lockdown measures were imposed in the city. New measures are being introduced in many countries across Europe as a second wave grips the continent.Hide Caption 90 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA student has her temperature checked before entering classes at a school in Thankot, Nepal, on September 30.Hide Caption 91 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA health worker tests a student for Covid-19 after classes started at a college in the Indian village of Jhargaon on September 30. Hide Caption 92 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedical staff hold swabs for rapid Covid-19 tests at a high school in Rome on September 28. Hide Caption 93 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedical residents sit in the middle of a street as they protest their working conditions in Barcelona, Spain, on September 28.Hide Caption 94 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMembers of the LSU marching band sit apart from one another before a college football game in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on September 26.Hide Caption 95 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA grave digger in Jakarta, Indonesia, plants a cross in a public cemetery, part of which is reserved for suspected Covid-19 victims, on September 26.Hide Caption 96 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA cemetery worker in La Paz, Bolivia, pushes a cart with a plastic-wrapped coffin on September 23.Hide Caption 97 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCarmen Wilke places flags September 22 as part of the Covid Memorial Project, which installed 20,000 American flags on the National Mall in Washington, DC. More than 200,000 people in the United States have died from Covid-19.Hide Caption 98 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAn adviser waits for people behind a plastic glass screen during a job fair in Barcelona, Spain, on September 21.Hide Caption 99 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman watches the band Jikustik during a drive-in concert in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, on September 20.Hide Caption 100 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicUltra-Orthodox Jews are separated by plastic shields as they pray in a synagogue in Bnei Brak, Israel, on September 18.Hide Caption 101 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA health worker in Hyderabad, India, takes a break in front of a fan on September 17.Hide Caption 102 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicBrides and grooms wait for the Pope's arrival at the San Damaso courtyard in the Vatican on September 16.Hide Caption 103 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMaria Hernandez, top, embraces her aunt through a transparent curtain at a nursing home in San Salvador, El Salvador, on September 11.Hide Caption 104 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA coronavirus victim is buried at a cemetery in Jakarta, Indonesia, on September 8.Hide Caption 105 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicYoung students make sure they are spread out from one another as they stand in a line before entering a classroom in Pamplona, Spain, on September 7.Hide Caption 106 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA girl cries as she is tested for Covid-19 at a drive-thru testing station in East Jerusalem on September 6.Hide Caption 107 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople wear face masks and sit spread apart at the opening ceremony of the Venice Film Festival in Italy on September 2.Hide Caption 108 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicNuns of the Missionaries of Charity, the order founded by Mother Teresa, wear masks and face shields as they distribute food to the poor and homeless in Kolkata, India, on August 26.Hide Caption 109 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCemetery workers carry Wilson Gil's remains on the outskirts of Lima, Peru, on August 26. Gil died of complications related to Covid-19, according to family members.Hide Caption 110 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWorkers in New Delhi prepare to cremate the body of a coronavirus victim on August 22.Hide Caption 111 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA health worker administers a Covid-19 test in the Indian village of Kusumpur on August 17.Hide Caption 112 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople gather in Little Venice on the Aegean Sea island of Mykonos, Greece, on August 16.Hide Caption 113 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThousands of people gather for an electronic music festival at a water park in Wuhan, China, on August 15. The novel coronavirus was first reported in Wuhan late last year.Hide Caption 114 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicFuneral workers in Peru's Uchumayo District bury a coffin in a massive burial ground for low-income people and unidentified victims of Covid-19.Hide Caption 115 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA man receives an injection while taking part in a vaccine trial in Hollywood, Florida, on August 13.Hide Caption 116 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicElection officials sort absentee ballots in Atlanta, where there were several runoffs taking place on August 11.Hide Caption 117 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicGravediggers bury a coronavirus victim at the Pondok Ranggon cemetery in Jakarta, Indonesia, on August 10.Hide Caption 118 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicKindergarten students wear face masks and play in screened-in areas at the Wat Khlong Toey School in Bangkok, Thailand, on August 10.Hide Caption 119 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedics wait to transport a woman with possible Covid-19 symptoms to a hospital in Austin, Texas, on August 7.Hide Caption 120 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA coronavirus victim is lowered into the ground during her funeral in New Delhi on August 7.Hide Caption 121 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicResident doctors and interns attend a rally in Seoul, South Korea, on August 7. They were protesting the government's plan to expand admissions to medical schools — a policy meant to address a shortage in physicians.Hide Caption 122 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA health worker performs a Covid-19 test at a gymnasium in Navotas, Philippines, on August 6.Hide Caption 123 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA worker disinfects a public school in Brasilia, Brazil, on August 5. The local government has begun preparations for the reopening of schools in early September.Hide Caption 124 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCemetery workers carry the coffin of a Covid-19 victim at a graveyard in Comas, Peru, on August 5.Hide Caption 125 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAn empty Swanston Street is seen in Melbourne's Central Business District on August 5. Australia's second-most populous city has implemented a curfew for the next six weeks.Hide Caption 126 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicElementary school students walk to class in Godley, Texas, on August 5. Three rural school districts in Johnson County were among the first in the state to head back to school for in-person classes.Hide Caption 127 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPoll worker Debra Moore sanitizes her workspace during a primary election in Detroit on August 4.Hide Caption 128 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA stylist from Grey Matter LA cuts a client's hair on a rooftop parking lot in Los Angeles on August 4.Hide Caption 129 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPaul Adamus, 7, waits at the bus stop for his first day of school in Dallas, Georgia, on August 3.Hide Caption 130 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicBeds are seen at a temporary field hospital set up in Hong Kong on August 1. AsiaWorld-Expo has been converted into a makeshift hospital that can take up to 500 patients. Hide Caption 131 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedical workers in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, showcase designs during a fashion show of personal protective equipment on August 1. The fashion show was held as a form of gratitude for all medical personnel who have been fighting Covid-19.Hide Caption 132 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA volunteer disinfects a rooftop area in Rio de Janeiro on August 1.Hide Caption 133 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicVolunteer health workers disinfect a mosque prior to Eid al-Adha prayers in Kabul, Afghanistan, on July 31.Hide Caption 134 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA casket carrying the body of coronavirus victim Lola M. Simmons is placed into a hearse following her funeral service in Dallas on July 30.Hide Caption 135 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicRelatives of Covid-19 patients line up to recharge oxygen cylinders in Villa Maria del Triunfo, Peru, on July 29.Hide Caption 136 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople watch the film "The Prestige" from a gondola boat in Venice, Italy, on July 28. Around the world, many films are being shown outside so that people can practice social distancing.Hide Caption 137 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicNurse Kathe Olmstead gives an injection to volunteer Melissa Harting in Binghamton, New York, on July 27. It was part of a clinical trial for a coronavirus vaccine. The trial is the first to reach Phase 3 in the United States. Hide Caption 138 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA health worker tests a child for Covid-19 at a school in New Delhi on July 27.Hide Caption 139 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPortraits are taped onto seats to help theatergoers spread out in Nicosia, Cyprus, on July 27.Hide Caption 140 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThe casket of a coronavirus victim is carried from a funeral home in Johannesburg on July 26.Hide Caption 141 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWorshippers of Legio Maria attend a prayer at their church in Nairobi, Kenya, on July 26. Places of worship have reopened in Kenya under strict guidelines.Hide Caption 142 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA casket containing the remains of a coronavirus victim waits to be removed from a mortuary in Soweto, South Africa, on July 24.Hide Caption 143 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCardboard cutouts of fans are seen in Globe Life Field during a Major League Baseball game in Arlington, Texas, on July 24. The league has resumed for a 60-game abbreviated season, but fans are not allowed to attend.Hide Caption 144 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCommuters wear face masks and face shields while traveling on a public bus in Lima, Peru, on July 22. Peru has mandated masks and shields on public transportation.Hide Caption 145 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicUndertakers push the casket of a coronavirus victim during a funeral in Soweto, South Africa, on July 21.Hide Caption 146 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicNurse Gabriel Leyva, second from left, treats a coronavirus patient in Edinburg, Texas, on July 20. Texas is among a string of Southern states grappling with rising coronavirus cases.Hide Caption 147 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA worker measures a man's temperature before allowing him to enter La Vega market in Santiago, Chile, on July 19.Hide Caption 148 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicIndigenous nurses in Santarem, Brazil, administer a Covid-19 test on Chief Domingos from the Arapium tribe on July 19.Hide Caption 149 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA restaurant's outdoor seating area is closed in Miami Beach, Florida, on July 18. The city ordered a curfew for most of its entertainment district.Hide Caption 150 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople watch a video projection in Avignon, France, on July 18. Since the Avignon Theatre Festival has been canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, the festival's organization has been projecting plays that made its history.Hide Caption 151 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicGuests arrive at Disney's Epcot park in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, on July 15. The park was reopening, as was Hollywood Studios, for the first time since March 15.Hide Caption 152 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicDoctors from the Palestinian Ministry of Health take blood samples in Hebron, West Bank, on July 15.Hide Caption 153 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHealth-care workers and union members demonstrate during a Bastille Day protest in Paris on July 14. France is giving health-care workers a raise for their efforts to fight the novel coronavirus.Hide Caption 154 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHealth workers in Mumbai, India, screen residents for Covid-19 symptoms on July 14.Hide Caption 155 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicActivist Thomas Kennedy is escorted away by security as he heckles Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis during a briefing in Miami on July 13. If Florida were a country, it would have ranked No. 9 in the number of Covid-19 cases worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins data that day.Hide Caption 156 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicUltra-Orthodox Jews gather for a July 13 protest over lockdown measures in Jerusalem.Hide Caption 157 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicBritish Prime Minister Boris Johnson talks with a paramedic during his visit to the headquarters of the London Ambulance Service NHS Trust on July 13. Wearing face masks in shops and supermarkets in England will be compulsory from July 24. The United Kingdom is one of the countries worst hit by coronavirus. Its fatalities trail only Brazil and the United States.Hide Caption 158 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMembers of the Bungoma County Isolation Team stand by the coffin of Dr. Doreen Lugaliki during her funeral in Ndalu, Kenya, on July 13. Lugaliki, 39, died from complications related to the novel coronavirus.Hide Caption 159 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople play volleyball in Hermosa Beach, California, on July 12. Los Angeles County beaches were reopened after being closed over the Fourth of July weekend. California is one of almost three dozen states in which cases were rising.Hide Caption 160 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThe boxed cremated remains of Mexicans who died from Covid-19 are covered before a service at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York on July 11. The ashes were blessed before they were repatriated to Mexico.Hide Caption 161 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicUS President Donald Trump wears a face mask as he visits Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, on July 11. This was the first time since the pandemic began that the White House press corps got a glimpse of Trump with a face covering.Hide Caption 162 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicIn this handout photo provided by the Walt Disney World Resort, a worker welcomes guests to the Magic Kingdom Park in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, on July 11. The park's reopening came the same weekend that Florida reached a record high for single-day case count increase.Hide Caption 163 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHealth-care workers walk through the Texas Medical Center during a shift change in Houston on July 8. Coronavirus cases have accelerated across much of the South and Southwest in recent weeks. Texas crossed the 200,000-case threshold on July 6 — just 17 days after it had reached 100,000 cases. Harris County, which encompasses Houston and is the most populous county in Texas, led the state in confirmed cases.Hide Caption 164 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicProtesters clash with police in front of Serbia's National Assembly building in Belgrade on July 8. People were demonstrating against President Aleksandar Vucic after he announced a weekend-long curfew to try to combat a surge in coronavirus cases.Hide Caption 165 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicFirefighters dressed in personal protective equipment prepare to distribute food at a public housing tower in North Melbourne, Australia, on July 7. Metropolitan Melbourne was placed under lockdown amid a resurgence of coronavirus cases.Hide Caption 166 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCars line up in the Hard Rock Stadium parking lot so drivers could be tested in Miami Gardens, Florida, on July 6.Hide Caption 167 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeruvian migrant Jose Collantes cries as he watches cemetery workers bury his wife, Silvia Cano, in Santiago, Chile, on July 3. She died of coronavirus complications, according to Collantes.Hide Caption 168 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicUS President Donald Trump speaks at the Mount Rushmore National Memorial in Keystone, South Dakota, on July 3. Social distancing was not observed at the Independence Day celebration, where Trump claimed that 99% of coronavirus cases in America are "totally harmless."Hide Caption 169 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicDr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, wears a Washington Nationals mask June 30 as he arrives to testify at a Senate committee hearing about the coronavirus pandemic. Fauci issued a stark warning to lawmakers, telling them he wouldn't be surprised if the United States sees new cases of coronavirus rising to a level of 100,000 a day.Hide Caption 170 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA city council worker carries trash from a coronavirus testing center in Leicester, England, on June 29. Schools and stores in the city of Leicester were closing again, with some restrictions being reimposed because of its high infection rate.Hide Caption 171 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman walks along a road painted with circles to help people maintain social distancing in Mumbai, India, on June 29.Hide Caption 172 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA member of the bar staff at Murray's Pub serves a pint of Guinness in Dublin, Ireland, on June 29. People in Ireland are tentatively returning to shops, hair salons and restaurants as the country emerges from its coronavirus lockdown.Hide Caption 173 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAgustina Cañamero and Pascual Pérez kiss each other through a plastic screen at a nursing home in Barcelona, Spain, on June 22. They've been married for 59 years.Hide Caption 174 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHugo, 3, has his temperature taken by a teacher as he arrives at kindergarten in Barcelona on June 26.Hide Caption 175 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA beach is slammed with people in Bournemouth, England, during a heat wave on June 25. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson began easing coronavirus restrictions in May, but people are still supposed to be distancing themselves from one another. After thousands flocked to beaches, officials in southern England declared a "major incident."Hide Caption 176 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMannequins sit at the Elpaso Bar in Ankara, Turkey, to make customers observe social distancing on June 24. The bar reopened after being closed for weeks.Hide Caption 177 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA ceremonial soldier wears a face mask during Russia's Victory Day parade in Moscow on June 24. A major celebration was originally planned to take place in May, with world leaders invited to attend, but it was postponed by the Kremlin after veterans organizations voiced concerns about the health risks such an event might pose amid the coronavirus crisis.Hide Caption 178 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHealth-care workers prepare to conduct Covid-19 testing in Mumbai, India, on June 23.Hide Caption 179 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicGraves are seen at the General Cemetery in Santiago, Chile, on June 23. Chile is among the Latin American countries hardest hit by the coronavirus.Hide Caption 180 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMalia Pena and her mother, Lisa Torriente, wear masks as they visit the beach in Santa Monica, California, on June 23. California was among 25 states that had recorded higher rates of new cases compared to the previous week.Hide Caption 181 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople worship at the Kaaba, Islam's holiest shrine, at the Grand Mosque complex in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on June 23. Saudi Arabia has announced it will hold a "very limited" Hajj celebration this year.Hide Caption 182 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA man has his throat swabbed June 17 at a Covid-19 testing site for those who were potentially exposed to the coronavirus at a wholesale food market in Beijing. For 55 days, the Chinese capital had not reported any locally transmitted infections, but a fresh cluster of coronavirus cases emerged from a sprawling wholesale food market in the city, infecting more than 180 people as of June 19.Hide Caption 183 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople are spread out as former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic Party's presumptive presidential nominee, speaks in Darby, Pennsylvania, on June 17.Hide Caption 184 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA firefighter in Chennai, India, sprays disinfectant to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus on June 11, 2020.Hide Caption 185 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThe sun sets over a cemetery for coronavirus victims near Najaf, Iraq.Hide Caption 186 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman is sprayed with disinfectant before entering a shopping mall in Jakarta, Indonesia, on June 9, 2020.Hide Caption 187 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicTeachers in Barcelona, Spain, try to prevent a hug between 6-year-olds Wendy Otin and Oumou Salam Niang as they meet on the first day of school following a lockdown.Hide Caption 188 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicIsidre Correa, who is recovering from the coronavirus, is taken to the seaside in Barcelona, Spain, on June 3, 2020. Hospital del Mar has been taking patients to the seaside as part of the recovery process.Hide Caption 189 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicDealers wear masks just before the reopening of the D Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.Hide Caption 190 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicGovernment health workers test a resident on the Brazilian island of Marajo on June 1, 2020.Hide Caption 191 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWorkers spray disinfectant inside a movie theater in Bangkok, Thailand, ahead of its reopening on May 31, 2020. Hide Caption 192 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople try out social-distancing "bumper tables" as the Fish Tales restaurant opened for in-person dining in Ocean City, Maryland, on May 29, 2020.Hide Caption 193 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople carry the coffin of a suspected coronavirus victim at the Nueva Esperanza cemetery, on the outskirts of Lima, Peru, on May 28, 2020.Hide Caption 194 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicShaandiin P. Parrish, Miss Navajo Nation, helps distribute food and other supplies to Navajo families in Counselor, New Mexico. Navajo Nation has been hit hard by the coronavirus.Hide Caption 195 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCommuters crowd a train station in Tokyo during the morning rush hour on May 26, 2020.Hide Caption 196 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicStudents take their spring exams at the Vallhall Sports Arena in Oslo, Norway, on May 26, 2020.Hide Caption 197 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPreschool students wait to wash their hands before class in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, on May 25, 2020. The country became one of the first in West Africa to restart lessons after a two-month coronavirus shutdown. Hide Caption 198 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA security official stands guard at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing as delegates leave the second plenary session of the National People's Congress.Hide Caption 199 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicOlivia Grant, right, hugs her grandmother, Mary Grace Sileo, through a plastic drop cloth that was hung up on a homemade clothesline in Wantagh, New York.Hide Caption 200 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicBrian Carabine, a retired US Marine, replaces flags at the South End Cemetery in East Hampton, New York, just before Memorial Day in 2020.Hide Caption 201 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHigh school graduates turn their tassels during a drive-thru graduation ceremony at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.Hide Caption 202 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThis aerial photo shows gravediggers working at the Vila Formosa Cemetery, on the outskirts of Sao Paulo, Brazil, on May 22, 2020. The coronavirus was surging in Brazil, the hardest-hit country in Latin America.Hide Caption 203 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWorkers wear protective gear as they start a cremation oven in Ecatepec, Mexico.Hide Caption 204 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA health worker wears a face shield while checking a patient's temperature at a hospital in Toluca, Mexico, on May 21, 2020. Mexico had reported its highest number of new daily cases.Hide Caption 205 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople lower the coffin of a woman who died from the coronavirus in Srinagar, India.Hide Caption 206 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCardboard cutouts of soccer fans are seen at the Borussia-Park stadium in Mönchengladbach, Germany. The Bundesliga, Germany's top pro soccer league, became the first major European competition to return amid the coronavirus pandemic.Hide Caption 207 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicLevi Tinker, resident historian and general manager of the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, makes an announcement inside the theater's empty auditorium on May 18, 2020. It was the theater's 93rd birthday celebration.Hide Caption 208 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople practice social distancing in New York's Domino Park on May 17, 2020.Hide Caption 209 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicNurses in Nairobi, Kenya, take part in a Zumba fitness class in the parking lot of the Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral and Research Hospital.Hide Caption 210 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicKevin Harvick celebrates with a burnout after winning a NASCAR Cup Series race in Darlington, South Carolina, on May 17, 2020. It was NASCAR's first race since its season was halted because of the pandemic. No fans were in attendance.Hide Caption 211 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAngelino, a professional soccer player with the German club RB Leipzig, takes a corner kick during a Bundesliga match against Freiburg on May 16, 2020. The stadium was nearly empty, as no more than 322 people were able to attend each Bundesliga match until the end of the season. Hide Caption 212 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMary Faye Cochran sings "You Are My Sunshine" to her son Stacey Smith from her senior-living facility in Smyrna, Georgia, on May 10, 2020. It was Mother's Day in the United States.Hide Caption 213 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPope Francis delivers a blessing from the window of his studio overlooking an empty St. Peter's Square.Hide Caption 214 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThe San Isidro cemetery in Mexico City, which was temporarily closed to the public to limit the spread of Covid-19, is seen in this aerial photo taken on May 10, 2020.Hide Caption 215 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMary Washington speaks through a window to her daughter Courtney Crosby and grandchild Sydney Crosby during a Mother's Day celebration at her senior-living facility in Smyrna, Georgia.Hide Caption 216 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA Briarcliff High School student participates in a parade of graduating seniors through Briarcliff Manor, New York, on May 9, 2020.Hide Caption 217 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople wear face masks while watching a Victory Day military parade in Minsk, Belarus, on May 9, 2020. The parade marked the 75th anniversary of the Allied victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.Hide Caption 218 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA man rides past social-distancing markers in front of a shop in Brussels, Belgium.Hide Caption 219 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA man pauses as he places the casket of a relative into a van at a busy New York funeral home.Hide Caption 220 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHealth-care workers wait for citizens to arrive at the Anna International Airport in Chennai, India. People were arriving in Chennai from Dubai, United Arab Emirates.Hide Caption 221 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA man wearing a face mask cycles through Chinatown in Yokohama, Japan, on May 8, 2020. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced that Japan would extend its state of emergency until the end of May.Hide Caption 222 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAmerican citizens who were stranded in Syria due to the pandemic arrive at the Lebanese border on their way to the Beirut airport, where they would be leaving for the United States.Hide Caption 223 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicDuring a protest in Washington, members of National Nurses United stand among empty shoes that they say represent nurses who have died from Covid-19.Hide Caption 224 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA worker helps disinfect a subway train in New York on May 6, 2020. The subway syatem was shut down for a deep-cleaning.Hide Caption 225 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHigh school students study in a classroom in Wuhan, China, as they returned to school on May 6, 2020.Hide Caption 226 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA nursery is disinfected in Cannes, France.Hide Caption 227 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicRefrigerated trucks are seen at a morgue that opened in New York to assist overwhelmed funeral homes.Hide Caption 228 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMigrant workers in New Delhi walk toward the Sarai Kale Khan Bus Terminus after learning that the government was preparing to send migrant workers back to their home states during a lockdown. In March 2020, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged all states to seal their borders to stop the coronavirus from being imported into rural areas.Hide Caption 229 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople exercise on a seafront promenade in Barcelona, Spain, on May 2, 2020. Spaniards filled the country's streets to work out for the first time after seven weeks of confinement in their homes. Hide Caption 230 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMichigan state police prevent protesters from entering the chamber of the Michigan House of Representatives on April 30, 2020. The protesters were unhappy with the state's stay-at-home order. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer recently extended the order through May 15, though restrictions were relaxed so some businesses could reopen.Hide Caption 231 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThis aerial photo shows surfers accessing Sydney's Tamarama Beach on April 29, 2020. Several Sydney beaches reopened for exercise only. Hide Caption 232 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicUS Vice President Mike Pence visits Dennis Nelson, a patient who survived the coronavirus and was going to give blood, during a tour of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, on April 28, 2020. Pence chose not to wear a face mask during the tour despite the facility's policy that's been in place since April 13. Pence told reporters that he wasn't wearing a mask because he's often tested for coronavirus.Hide Caption 233 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA barber wears protective equipment as he cuts a customer's hair in Lausanne, Switzerland.Hide Caption 234 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAfter recovering from the coronavirus, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson returned to work on April 27, 2020.Hide Caption 235 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHealth workers at a coronavirus testing center in New Delhi attend to a colleague who fainted due to exhaustion on April 27, 2020. Hide Caption 236 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicFamilies walk along a boulevard in Barcelona, Spain, on April 26, 2020.Hide Caption 237 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA muezzin, the person at a mosque who calls Muslims to daily prayers, reads the Quran at a mosque in Gaza City after Ramadan began on April 24, 2020.Hide Caption 238 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPitrik van der Lubbe waves from a boom lift to his 88-year-old father, Henk, at his father's nursing home in Gouda, Netherlands. Pitrik had not seen his father in more than four weeks.Hide Caption 239 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicProtesters shout slogans against Lebanese Central Bank governor Riad Salamé as they block Hamra Street in Beirut, Lebanon, on April 23, 2020. Anti-government protesters were demonstrating in Beirut as they continued to endure one of the country's worst-ever economic crises. Hide Caption 240 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA boy plays hopscotch at his home in A Coruna, Spain. Hide Caption 241 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicOmar Rodriguez organizes caskets at the Gerard Neufeld Funeral Home in New York. The funeral home in Queens was overwhelmed by the pandemic.Hide Caption 242 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA dentist wears protective equipment while treating a patient in Den Bosch, Netherlands.Hide Caption 243 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicBiology teachers prepare to hold an exam at a secondary school in Berlin on April 22, 2020.Hide Caption 244 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA volunteer in Yangon, Myanmar, spreads calcium oxide on a road to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus on April 22, 2020.Hide Caption 245 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMigrants wave from balconies at a hotel in Kranidi, Greece, on April 21, 2020. The shelter, which hosts 470 asylum seekers, was placed in isolation after a pregnant resident tested positive for the novel coronavirus.Hide Caption 246 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA man disinfects a ceiling lamp at the Čobanija Mosque in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.Hide Caption 247 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA nurse holds a newborn baby, wearing a face shield as a protective measure, at a maternity facility in Jakarta, Indonesia.Hide Caption 248 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHealth workers at Madrid's La Paz Hospital hold a minute of silence to remember Joaquin Diaz, the hospital's chief of surgery who died because of the coronavirus.Hide Caption 249 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman applauds from the balcony of her Paris home to show support for health care workers on April 20, 2020.Hide Caption 250 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA health-care worker stands in a Denver street to counterprotest the hundreds of people who were demanding that stay-at-home orders be lifted.Hide Caption 251 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMayor's office workers wear protective suits as they conduct a census in a Bogota, Colombia, neighborhood on April 19, 2020. They were trying to find out how many families needed to be provided with food.Hide Caption 252 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThe class of 2020 tosses hats into the air at the Air Force Academy graduation in Colorado Springs, Colorado.Hide Caption 253 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman sticks her tongue out of a torn mask at a Reopen Maryland rally outside the State House in Annapolis, Maryland, on April 18, 2020. Residents in multiple states were protesting stay-at-home orders.Hide Caption 254 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicNewly married Tyler and Caryn Suiters embrace following their marriage ceremony in Arlington, Virginia, on April 18, 2020. The Rev. Andrew Merrow and his wife, Cameron, were the only other attendees at the ceremony, which was held at St. Mary's Episcopal Church.Hide Caption 255 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAbed Khankan cuts a customer's hair outdoors in Malmo, Sweden.Hide Caption 256 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicTwo women walk to rent a small paddle boat by the Vltava River in Prague, Czech Republic, on April 17, 2020.Hide Caption 257 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCars sit at a newly opened drive-in cinema in Dortmund, Germany, on April 17, 2020. It was in front of a former blast furnace.Hide Caption 258 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicFuneral workers in Manaus, Brazil, prepare the grave of a woman who was suspected to have died from the coronavirus.Hide Caption 259 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA member of the Don Bosco Foundation delivers food from the Fraternitas Project, which serves vulnerable families in Seville, Spain.Hide Caption 260 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPolice officers try on personal protective equipment in Amritsar, India.Hide Caption 261 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWorkers in Nairobi, Kenya, fumigate the streets and the stalls of the City Park Market.Hide Caption 262 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicNovice Buddhist monks wear face shields at the Molilokayaram Educational Institute in Bangkok, Thailand, on April 15, 2020.Hide Caption 263 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman sits on a bench at an empty metro station in Prague, Czech Republic.Hide Caption 264 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHealth workers in Barcelona, Spain, acknowledge people who were showing their support from their balconies and windows.Hide Caption 265 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicSouth Korean election officials sort out parliamentary ballots at a gymnasium in Seoul on April 15, 2020.Hide Caption 266 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWorkers from the garment sector in Dhaka, Bangladesh, block a road during a protest demanding payment of unpaid wages.Hide Caption 267 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman meets with her son in a "Quarantainer," a container devised to allow people to visit each other without risking the spread of coronavirus, at a care center in Utrecht, Netherlands.Hide Caption 268 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicFirefighters transfer a patient from an ambulance in Montpelier, France, on April 14, 2020.Hide Caption 269 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA cemetery worker pauses while digging graves at the San Vicente cemetery in Cordoba, Argentina.Hide Caption 270 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWorkers produce protective face masks at a new factory near Tehran, Iran, on April 14, 2020.Hide Caption 271 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicProtesters stand outside the Statehouse Atrium in Columbus, Ohio, to voice their opposition to stay-at-home orders. About 100 protesters assembled outside the building during Gov. Mike DeWine's weekday update on the state's response to the pandemic.Hide Caption 272 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedical workers in Istanbul clap for 107-year-old Havahan Karadeniz as she is discharged from the hospital on April 13, 2020. She had just recovered from the coronavirus.Hide Caption 273 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople in Seoul, South Korea, listen to a speech from Hwang Kyo-ahn, who was campaigning for the upcoming parliamentary elections.Hide Caption 274 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA flower shop employee destroys unsold flowers in St. Petersburg, Russia, on April 13, 2020.Hide Caption 275 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA police officer requests that people return to return to their homes during a gathering that marked the Bisket Jatra festival in Bhaktapur, Nepal.Hide Caption 276 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA doctor in a protective chamber tests a patient for coronavirus at a walk-in kiosk in Chennai, India.Hide Caption 277 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMusicians play their instruments for a retirement home in Karben, Germany.Hide Caption 278 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman covers herself with plastic as heavy rain falls outside a New York hospital on April 13, 2020.Hide Caption 279 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople in Jerusalem attend the funeral of Eliyahu Bakshi-Doron, Israel's former chief rabbi who died from coronavirus complications.Hide Caption 280 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicIn Rio de Janeiro, the Christ the Redeemer statue was illuminated to make Christ look like a doctor on April 12, 2020.Hide Caption 281 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPedro Opeka, founder of the Akamasoa Association, conducts the traditional Easter Mass in a granite quarry while maintaining social distancing in Antananarivo, Madagascar.Hide Caption 282 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicBodies are stored in a vacant room at Sinai-Grace Hospital in Detroit. Two sources told CNN that at least one room, which is typically used for studies on sleeping habits, was used to store bodies because the morgue was full and morgue staff did not work at night.Hide Caption 283 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA couple stands in a park along the Yangtze River in Wuhan, China.Hide Caption 284 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPriest-in-charge Angie Smith uses her phone to broadcast an Easter service from a churchyard in Hartley Wintney, England.Hide Caption 285 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicChildren wave to a person dressed as the Easter Bunny during a neighborhood parade in Haverford, Pennsylvania, on April 10, 2020.Hide Caption 286 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHealth workers in Leganes, Spain, cry during a memorial for a co-worker who died because of the coronavirus.Hide Caption 287 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicVolunteers spray disinfectant in a favela in Rio de Janeiro.Hide Caption 288 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicBodies are buried on New York's Hart Island on April 9, 2020. New York City officials said that Hart Island, which for decades has been used as the final resting place for people who died unclaimed, would also be used for unclaimed coronavirus victims.Hide Caption 289 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA health care worker holds the hand of a coronavirus patient being moved at a hospital near Barcelona, Spain.Hide Caption 290 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicService boats spray water in London to show support for health care workers on April 9, 2020.Hide Caption 291 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicEmployees of Hyundai Card, a credit card company, sit behind protective screens as they eat in an office cafeteria in Seoul, South Korea, on April 9, 2020.Hide Caption 292 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople wait in their cars for the San Antonio Food Bank to begin food distribution on April 9, 2020.Hide Caption 293 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA worker disinfects a carved cross at the Salt Cathedral in Zipaquira, Colombia, on April 8, 2020.Hide Caption 294 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA cake shop employee in Athens, Greece, prepares chocolate Easter bunnies with face masks on April 8, 2020.Hide Caption 295 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCalifornians Sarah and Aaron Sanders, along with their children, use video conferencing to celebrate a Passover Seder with other family members.Hide Caption 296 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA medical staff member from China's Jilin province, center, cries while hugging nurses from Wuhan on April 8, 2020. Wuhan was reopening its borders after 76 days.Hide Caption 297 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCars in Wuhan line up to leave at a highway toll station.Hide Caption 298 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicRabbi Yaakov Kotlarsky places Passover Seder to-go packages into a car trunk in Arlington Heights, Illinois.Hide Caption 299 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman in London shows her support for British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on April 7, 2020. Johnson was hospitalized after his coronavirus symptoms "worsened," according to his office.Hide Caption 300 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA voter checks in to cast a ballot in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on April 7, 2020. The state was going through with its presidential primary despite the pandemic.Hide Caption 301 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA man is sprayed with disinfectant prior to going to a market in Tirana, Albania.Hide Caption 302 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicIzzie, left, and Tippi wear ventilated dog masks in Philadelphia.Hide Caption 303 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople wait in line to bury loved ones at a cemetery in Guayaquil, Ecuador, on April 6, 2020. In some parts of the overwhelmed city, bodies had been left on the streets. Hide Caption 304 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPolice detain a doctor in Quetta, Pakistan, who was among dozens of health care workers protesting a lack of personal protective equipment.Hide Caption 305 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA Catholic priest sprinkles holy water on devotees during Palm Sunday celebrations in Quezon City, Philippines, on April 5, 2020.Hide Caption 306 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople shine lights from their balcony during a nationwide candlelight vigil in Bangalore, India, on April 5, 2020.Hide Caption 307 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman in Glasgow, Scotland, watches Britain's Queen Elizabeth II give a television address regarding the coronavirus pandemic.Hide Caption 308 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicParamilitary members unload provisions in Kampala, Uganda, on April 4, 2020. It was the first day of government food distribution for people affected by the nation's lockdown.Hide Caption 309 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA police officer wearing a coronavirus-themed outfit walks in a market in Chennai, India, to raise awareness about social distancing.Hide Caption 310 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman in Moscow cooks while watching Russian President Vladimir Putin address the nation over the coronavirus pandemic.Hide Caption 311 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThe hashtag "stayhome" is projected onto the Matterhorn mountain that straddles Switzerland and Italy on April 1, 2020. The mountain was illuminated by Swiss artist Gerry Hofstetter, who was transforming buildings, monuments and landscapes all over the world to raise awareness during the pandemic. Hide Caption 312 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicVolunteers load food bags on a truck to deliver them to low-income families in Panama City, Panama, on April 1, 2020.Hide Caption 313 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicDesigner Friederike Jorzig adjusts a mannequin wearing a wedding dress and a face mask at her store in Berlin on March 31, 2020.Hide Caption 314 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople pray next to the grave of musician Robson de Souza Lopes after his burial in Manaus, Brazil, on March 31, 2020. According to authorities at the Amazonas Health Secretary, the 43-year-old died after being diagnosed with the novel coronavirus.Hide Caption 315 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicChris Lyndberg hands out a free lunch to a truck driver at a rest area along Interstate 10 in Sacaton, Arizona, on March 31, 2020. The Arizona Trucking Association was giving away 500 Dilly's Deli lunches to show its appreciation for truck drivers who have been delivering medical supplies, food and other necessities during the coronavirus pandemic.Hide Caption 316 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThe USNS Comfort, a Navy hospital ship, reaches New York City on March 30, 2020. Another hospital ship was in Los Angeles to take some of the pressure off medical facilities that were strained because of the pandemic.Hide Caption 317 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAn emergency field hospital is constructed in New York's Central Park on March 30, 2020.Hide Caption 318 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicFarmers deliver vegetables to a customer in Saint-Georges-sur-Cher, France, on March 29, 2020.Hide Caption 319 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople listen from their homes as priests conduct Sunday mass from a church roof in Rome on March 29, 2020.Hide Caption 320 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicGyorgy David Jablonovszky and his bride, Timea, are joined by close relatives during their wedding ceremony in Miskolc, Hungary, on March 28, 2020. Because of the coronavirus, engaged couples across the globe have had to rethink their walks down the aisle.Hide Caption 321 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA worker fixes partitions at a quarantine center in Guwahati, India, on March 28, 2020.Hide Caption 322 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicDevices used in diagnosing the coronavirus are inspected in Cheongju, South Korea, on March 27, 2020. The devices were being prepared for testing kits at the bio-diagnostic company SD Biosensor.Hide Caption 323 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA student does homework in Bratislava, Slovakia, on March 27, 2020. Schools were shut down across the world, and many children have been receiving their lessons online.Hide Caption 324 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA National Guard truck sprays disinfectant in Caracas, Venezuela, on March 27, 2020.Hide Caption 325 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople wearing face masks walk near the USNS Mercy after the Navy hospital ship arrived in the Los Angeles area to assist local hospitals dealing with the coronavirus pandemic.Hide Caption 326 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPope Francis prays in an empty St. Peter's Square on March 27, 2020.Hide Caption 327 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCoffins carrying coronavirus victims are stored in a warehouse in Ponte San Pietro, Italy, on March 26, 2020. They would be transported to another area for cremation.Hide Caption 328 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMembers of Iran's Revolutionary Guard prepare to take part in disinfecting the city of Tehran on March 25, 2020. Hide Caption 329 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicLydia Hassebroek attends a ballet class from her home in New York on March 25, 2020.Hide Caption 330 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople visit the Beijing Zoo after it reopened its outdoor exhibits to the public.Hide Caption 331 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThe Olympic flame is displayed in Iwaki, Japan, a day after the 2020 Tokyo Games were postponed.Hide Caption 332 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman suspected of having coronavirus is helped from her home by emergency medical technicians Robert Sabia, left, and Mike Pareja, in Paterson, New Jersey.Hide Caption 333 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople practice social distancing as they wait for takeout food at a shopping mall in Bangkok, Thailand, on March 24, 2020.Hide Caption 334 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAuthorities are seen in Madrid, where an ice rink was converted into a makeshift morgue to cope with the coronavirus fallout.Hide Caption 335 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA tourist wears a face mask while visiting the Badaling section of the Great Wall of China on March 24, 2020. The section reopened to visitors after being closed for two months.Hide Caption 336 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople arrive at the South Municipal Cemetery in Madrid to attend the burial of a man who died from the coronavirus.Hide Caption 337 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPassengers arrive at Hong Kong International Airport on March 23, 2020.Hide Caption 338 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicGiuseppe Corbari holds Sunday Mass in front of photographs sent in by his congregation members in Giussano, Italy. Many religious services are being streamed online so that people can worship while still maintaining their distance from others.Hide Caption 339 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople clap from balconies to show their appreciation for health care workers in Mumbai, India.Hide Caption 340 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman attends a Sunday service at the Nairobi Baptist Church in Nairobi, Kenya, on March 22, 2020. The service was streamed live on the internet.Hide Caption 341 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA Syrian Red Crescent member sprays disinfectant along an alley of the historic Hamidiyah market in Damascus, Syria.Hide Caption 342 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople are seen on California's Huntington Beach on March 21, 2020. Crowds descended on California beaches, hiking trails and parks over the weekend in open defiance of a state order to shelter in place and avoid close contact with others.Hide Caption 343 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA funeral service is held without family members in Bergamo, Italy, on March 21, 2020.Hide Caption 344 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA member of the Syrian Violet relief group disinfects tents at a camp for displaced people in Kafr Jalis, Syria, on March 21, 2020.Hide Caption 345 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA doctor examines Juan Vasquez inside a testing tent at St. Barnabas Hospital in New York.Hide Caption 346 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA Mass in Rio de Janeiro honors coronavirus victims around the world on March 18, 2020. Brazil's Christ the Redeemer statue was lit up with flags and messages of hope in solidarity with countries affected by the pandemic.Hide Caption 347 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedical staff wearing protective suits ride down an escalator at Moscow's Sheremetyevo International Airport on March 18, 2020.Hide Caption 348 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHasidic Jewish men take part in a "social distancing" minyan in New York on March 17, 2020.Hide Caption 349 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA patient in a biocontainment unit is carried on a stretcher in Rome on March 17, 2020.Hide Caption 350 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA pedestrian walks a dog through a quiet street in New York on March 17, 2020.Hide Caption 351 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople gather to collect free face masks in New Delhi on March 17, 2020.Hide Caption 352 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicDermot Hickey, left, and Phillip Vega ask a pedestrian in New York to take their picture on a thinly trafficked Fifth Avenue. Many streets across the world were much more bare as people distanced themselves from others. In the United States, the White House advised people not to gather in groups of more than 10.Hide Caption 353 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicStudents at the Attarkiah Islamic School wear face masks during a ceremony in Thailand's southern province of Narathiwat.Hide Caption 354 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople wait outside a Woolworths store in Sunbury, Australia, on March 17, 2020. Australian supermarket chains announced special shopping hours for the elderly and people with disabilities so that they could shop in less crowded aisles.Hide Caption 355 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA member of Spain's Military Emergencies Unit carries out a general disinfection at the Malaga airport.Hide Caption 356 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicDisplaced families near Atme, Syria, attend a workshop aimed at spreading awareness about the coronavirus.Hide Caption 357 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicFrench President Emmanuel Macron is seen on a screen in Paris as he announces new coronavirus containment measures on March 16, 2020. France was put on lockdown, and all nonessential outings were outlawed. Macron also promised to support French businesses by guaranteeing €300 billion worth of loans and suspending rent and utility bills owed by small companies.Hide Caption 358 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA police officer checks the temperatures of bus passengers at a checkpoint in Manila, Philippines.Hide Caption 359 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicFlowers are stored prior to their destruction at a flower auction in Aalsmeer, Netherlands. Lower demand threatened the Dutch horticultural sector, forcing the destruction of products.Hide Caption 360 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicBody temperatures are scanned as people enter the Buddhist temple Wat Pho in Bangkok, Thailand.Hide Caption 361 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicTwo nuns greet neighbors from their balcony in Turin, Italy, on March 15, 2020.Hide Caption 362 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPope Francis, inside the Church of San Marcello in Rome's city center, prays at a famous crucifix that believers claim helped to save Romans from the plague in 1522.Hide Caption 363 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPassengers wait for their flights at Marrakesh Airport in Morocco on March 15, 2020.Hide Caption 364 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicUS Vice President Mike Pence takes a question during a White House briefing about the coronavirus.Hide Caption 365 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA Sea World employee sprays disinfectant in Jakarta, Indonesia, on March 14, 2020.Hide Caption 366 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople wait in line to go through customs at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport on March 14, 2020. Travelers returning from Europe said they were being made to wait for hours at US airports, often in close quarters, as personnel screened them for the coronavirus.Hide Caption 367 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHundreds of people line up to enter a Costco in Novato, California, on March 14, 2020. Many people were stocking up on food, toilet paper and other items. As a response to panic buying, retailers in the United States and Canada started limiting the number of toilet paper that customers could buy in one trip.Hide Caption 368 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA member of the White House physician's office takes a media member's temperature in the White House briefing room. It was ahead of a news conference with President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence.Hide Caption 369 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA nurse in Cremona, Italy, takes a moment in this heartbreaking photo posted to Instagram by photographer Paolo Miranda. Italy's health care system has been severely tested by the coronavirus pandemic.Hide Caption 370 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicReporters in Arlington, Virginia, sit approximately 4 feet apart during a briefing by Marine Corps Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie on March 13, 2020.Hide Caption 371 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople walk past a closed Broadway theater after New York canceled all gatherings over 500 people.Hide Caption 372 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA Costco customer stands by two shopping carts in Richmond, California, on March 13, 2020.Hide Caption 373 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA teacher works in an empty classroom at the Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, Spain.Hide Caption 374 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman looks at an empty bread aisle in Antwerp, Belgium, on March 13, 2020.Hide Caption 375 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicEmployees of the Greek Parliament wear plastic gloves ahead of the swearing-in ceremony for Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou.Hide Caption 376 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA motorcyclist drives through disinfectant sprayed in Jammu, India, on March 13, 2020.Hide Caption 377 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWorkers prepare to construct an additional building on a hospital on the outskirts of Moscow.Hide Caption 378 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPaul Boyer, head equipment manager of the NHL's Detroit Red Wings, wheels out equipment bags in Washington on March 12, 2020. The NHL was among the sports leagues that had suspended their seasons.Hide Caption 379 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicStudents leave Glacier Peak High School in Snohomish, Washington, on March 12, 2020. Beginning the following day, schools in the Snohomish school district planned to be closed through April 24.Hide Caption 380 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAn Uber Eats delivery biker stands at a deserted Piazza di Spagna in Rome.Hide Caption 381 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople at a railway station in Seoul, South Korea, watch a live broadcast of US President Donald Trump on March 12, 2020. Trump announced that, in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus, he would sharply restrict travel from more than two dozen European countries.Hide Caption 382 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWorkers in protective suits disinfect Istanbul's Dolmabahce Palace on March 11, 2020.Hide Caption 383 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA person wearing a face mask walks outside of a shopping mall in Beijing on March 11, 2020.Hide Caption 384 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPolice officers restrain the relative of an inmate outside the Sant'Anna jail in Modena, Italy, on March 9, 2020. Riots broke out in several Italian jails after visits were suspended to curb the spread of the coronavirus.Hide Caption 385 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedical staff in Wuhan, China, celebrate after all coronavirus patients were discharged from a temporary hospital on March 9, 2020.Hide Caption 386 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicTraders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on March 9, 2020. Stocks plummeted as coronavirus worries and an oil price race to the bottom weighed on global financial markets.Hide Caption 387 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicRescuers search for victims at the site of a collapsed hotel in Quanzhou, China, on March 8, 2020. The hotel was being used as a coronavirus quarantine center.Hide Caption 388 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThe Grand Princess cruise ship, carrying at least 21 people who tested positive for coronavirus, is seen off the coast of San Francisco on March 8, 2020. The ship was being held at sea.Hide Caption 389 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicSumo wrestlers attend a tournament in Osaka, Japan, that was being held behind closed doors because of the coronavirus outbreak.Hide Caption 390 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA couple rides a bicycle at a park in Seoul, South Korea, on March 7, 2020.Hide Caption 391 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA volunteer from Blue Sky Rescue uses fumigation equipment to disinfect a residential compound in Beijing on March 5, 2020.Hide Caption 392 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAirmen from the California National Guard drop coronavirus testing kits down to the Grand Princess cruise ship off the coast of California on March 5, 2020.Hide Caption 393 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMunicipal workers are seen at the Kaaba, inside Mecca's Grand Mosque. Saudi Arabia emptied Islam's holiest site for sterilization over coronavirus fears, an unprecedented move after the kingdom suspended the year-round Umrah pilgrimage.Hide Caption 394 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPassengers react as a worker wearing a protective suit disinfects the departure area of a railway station in Hefei, China, on March 4, 2020.Hide Caption 395 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicTeachers at the Nagoya International School in Japan conduct an online class for students staying at home as a precaution.Hide Caption 396 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicSoldiers spray disinfectant throughout a shopping street in Seoul.Hide Caption 397 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA Muslim worshipper attends a mass prayer against coronavirus in Dakar, Senegal.Hide Caption 398 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople wear face masks in New York's Times Square on March 3, 2020. New York reported its first case of coronavirus two days earlier. Hide Caption 399 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA security guard stands on the Shibuya Sky observation deck in Tokyo on March 3, 2020.Hide Caption 400 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicUS President Donald Trump, flanked by Vice President Mike Pence, left, and Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, speaks during a meeting with pharmaceutical executives and the White House coronavirus task force on March 2, 2020. Throughout the meeting, Trump was hyperfocused on pressing industry leaders in the room for a timeline for a coronavirus vaccine and treatment. But experts at the table -- from the administration and the pharmaceutical industry -- repeatedly emphasized that a vaccine can't be rushed to market before it's been declared safe for the public.Hide Caption 401 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedical staff stand outside a hospital in Daegu, South Korea, on March 1, 2020.Hide Caption 402 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHealth care workers transfer a patient at the Life Care Center in Kirkland, Washington, on March 1, 2020. The long-term care facility was linked to confirmed coronavirus cases.Hide Caption 403 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicBritish Prime Minister Boris Johnson visits a London laboratory of the Public Health England National Infection Service.Hide Caption 404 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicTomoyuki Sugano, a professional baseball player on the Yomiuri Giants, throws a pitch in an empty Tokyo Dome during a preseason game on February 29, 2020. Fans were barred from preseason games to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.Hide Caption 405 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCommuters wearing masks make their way to work during morning rush hour at the Shinagawa train station in Tokyo.Hide Caption 406 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedical staff transport a coronavirus patient within the Red Cross hospital in Wuhan on February 28, 2020. Hide Caption 407 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicInter Milan plays Ludogorets in an empty soccer stadium in Milan, Italy, on February 27, 2020. The match was ordered to be played behind closed doors as Italian authorities continued to grapple with the coronavirus outbreak.Hide Caption 408 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA bank clerk disinfects banknotes in China's Sichuan province on February 26, 2020.Hide Caption 409 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA child wearing a protective face mask rides on a scooter in an empty area in Beijing.Hide Caption 410 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA Catholic devotee wears a face mask as he is sprinkled with ash during Ash Wednesday services in Paranaque, Philippines, on February 26, 2020.Hide Caption 411 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople disinfect Qom's Masumeh shrine in Tehran, Iran, on February 25, 2020.Hide Caption 412 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA worker in Daegu, South Korea, stacks plastic buckets containing medical waste from coronavirus patients.Hide Caption 413 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicParamedics carry a stretcher off an ambulance in Hong Kong on February 23, 2020.Hide Caption 414 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople attend a professional soccer match in Kobe, Japan, on February 23, 2020. To help stop the spread of the novel coronavirus, the soccer club Vissel Kobe told fans not to sing, chant or wave flags in the season opener against Yokohama FC.Hide Caption 415 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA team of volunteers disinfects a pedestrian bridge in Bangkok, Thailand.Hide Caption 416 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA man rides his bike in Beijing on February 23, 2020.Hide Caption 417 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHospital personnel in Codogno, Italy, carry new beds inside the hospital on February 21, 2020. The hospital was hosting some people who had been diagnosed with the novel coronavirus.Hide Caption 418 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicDoctors look at a CT scan of a lung at a hospital in Xiaogan, China, on February 20, 2020.Hide Caption 419 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA sales clerk wears a mask as she waits for customers at a hat shop in Beijing on February 18, 2020.Hide Caption 420 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicBuses carrying American passengers arrive at the Haneda Airport in Tokyo on February 17, 2020. The passengers were leaving the quarantined Diamond Princess cruise ship to be repatriated to the United States.Hide Caption 421 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA medical worker rests at the isolation ward of the Red Cross hospital in Wuhan on February 16, 2020.Hide Caption 422 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAuthorities watch as the Westerdam cruise ship approaches a port in Sihanoukville, Cambodia, on February 13, 2020. Despite having no confirmed cases of coronavirus on board, the Westerdam was refused port by four other Asian countries before being allowed to dock in Cambodia.Hide Caption 423 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA worker has his temperature checked on a shuttered commercial street in Beijing on February 12, 2020.Hide Caption 424 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicBeds are made in the Wuhan Sports Center, which was converted into a temporary hospital.Hide Caption 425 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA child rides a scooter past a police officer wearing protective gear outside the Hong Mei House in Hong Kong. More than 100 people evacuated the housing block after four residents in two different apartments tested positive for the coronavirus.Hide Caption 426 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicRelatives of quarantined passengers wave at the Diamond Princess cruise ship as it leaves a port in Yokohama, Japan, to dump wastewater and generate potable water. Dozens of people on the ship were infected with coronavirus.Hide Caption 427 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThe Deneway branch of the County Oak Medical Centre is closed amid coronavirus fears in Brighton, England, on February 11, 2020. Several locations in and around Brighton were quarantined after a man linked to several coronavirus cases in the United Kingdom came into contact with health-care workers and members of the public.Hide Caption 428 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA police officer, left, wears protective gear as he guards a cordon at the Hong Mei House in Hong Kong on February 11, 2020.Hide Caption 429 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA worker wears a protective suit as he waits to screen people entering an office building in Beijing. China's workforce was slowly coming back to work after the coronavirus outbreak forced many parts of the country to extend the Lunar New Year holiday by more than a week.Hide Caption 430 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicChinese President Xi Jinping has his temperature checked during an appearance in Beijing on February 10, 2020.Hide Caption 431 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPhotojournalists wearing face masks take photos of a bus carrying passengers after they disembarked from the World Dream cruise ship in Hong Kong on February 9, 2020. More than 5,300 people were quarantined on two cruise ships off Hong Kong and Japan.Hide Caption 432 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople participating in a Lunar New Year Parade in New York City hold signs reading, "Wuhan stay strong!" on February 9, 2020.Hide Caption 433 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA shopper walks past empty shelves at a grocery store in Hong Kong on February 9, 2020. China's Ministry of Commerce encouraged supermarkets and grocery stores to resume operations as the country's voluntary or mandatory quarantines began to take an economic toll. Hide Caption 434 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA worker wearing a protective suit uses a machine to disinfect a business establishment in Shanghai, China, on February 9, 2020.Hide Caption 435 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWorkers in protective gear walk near the Diamond Princess cruise ship docked in Yokohama, Japan.Hide Caption 436 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople in Hong Kong attend a vigil for whistleblower doctor Li Wenliang. Li, 34, died in Wuhan after contracting the virus while treating a patient.Hide Caption 437 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman grieves while paying tribute to Li at Li's hospital in Wuhan.Hide Caption 438 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThe Anthem of the Seas cruise ship is seen docked at the Cape Liberty Cruise Port in Bayonne, New Jersey, on February 7, 2020. Passengers were to be screened for coronavirus as a precaution, an official with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told CNN.Hide Caption 439 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA light installation is displayed by striking members of the Hospital Authority Employees Alliance and other activists at the Hospital Authority building in Hong Kong.Hide Caption 440 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPassengers are seen on the deck of the Diamond Princess cruise ship, docked at the Yokohama Port on February 7, 2020.Hide Caption 441 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicFlight attendants wearing face masks make their way through the Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok on February 7, 2020.Hide Caption 442 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWorkers check sterile medical gloves at a latex-product manufacturer in Nanjing, China, on February 6, 2020.Hide Caption 443 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman wears a protective mask as she shops in a Beijing market on February 6, 2020.Hide Caption 444 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThis aerial photo shows the Leishenshan Hospital that was being built in Wuhan to handle coronavirus patients.Hide Caption 445 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA passenger shows a note from the World Dream cruise ship docked at the Kai Tak cruise terminal in Hong Kong.Hide Caption 446 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA mask is seen on a statue in Beijing on February 5, 2020.Hide Caption 447 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicAn ambulance stops at a traffic light in front of the Grand Lisboa Hotel in Macao. The virus turned China's gambling mecca into a ghost town.Hide Caption 448 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA dog in Beijing wears a makeshift mask constructed from a paper cup.Hide Caption 449 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicStriking hospital workers in Hong Kong demand the closure of the border with mainland China on February 4, 2020.Hide Caption 450 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicThe Diamond Princess cruise ship sits anchored in quarantine off the port of Yokohama on February 4, 2020. It arrived a day earlier with passengers feeling ill.Hide Caption 451 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA medical worker wearing protective gear waits to take the temperature of people entering Princess Margaret Hospital in Hong Kong.Hide Caption 452 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedical workers in protective suits help transfer patients to a newly completed field hospital in Wuhan.Hide Caption 453 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople wearing protective overalls talk outside a Wuhan hotel housing people in isolation on February 3, 2020.Hide Caption 454 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA man stands in front of TV screens broadcasting a speech by Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam on February 3, 2020. Lam said the city would shut almost all border-control points to the mainland.Hide Caption 455 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA colleague sprays disinfectant on a doctor in Wuhan on February 3, 2020.Hide Caption 456 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicCommuters in Tokyo walk past an electric board displaying dismal stock prices on February 3, 2020, the first business day after the Chinese New Year. Asia's markets recorded their worst day in years as investors finally got a chance to react to the worsening coronavirus outbreak.Hide Caption 457 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedical workers move a coronavirus patient into an isolation ward at the Second People's Hospital in Fuyang, China, on February 1, 2020.Hide Caption 458 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicChildren wear plastic bottles as makeshift masks while waiting to check in to a flight at the Beijing Capital Airport on January 30, 2020.Hide Caption 459 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPassengers in Hong Kong wear protective masks as they wait to board a train at Lo Wu Station, near the mainland border.Hide Caption 460 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA volunteer wearing protective clothing disinfects a street in Qingdao, China, on January 29, 2020.Hide Caption 461 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicNanning, China, residents line up to buy face masks from a medical appliance store on January 29, 2020.Hide Caption 462 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicLyu Jun, left, a member of a medical team leaving for Wuhan, says goodbye to a loved one in Urumqi, China, on January 28, 2020.Hide Caption 463 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA charter flight from Wuhan arrives at an airport in Anchorage, Alaska, on January 28, 2020. The US government chartered the plane to bring home US citizens and diplomats from the American consulate in Wuhan.Hide Caption 464 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicSouth Korean President Moon Jae-in wears a mask to inspect the National Medical Center in Seoul on January 28, 2020.Hide Caption 465 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam, center, attends a news conference in Hong Kong on January 28, 2020. Lam said China would stop individual travelers to Hong Kong while closing some border checkpoints and restricting flights and train services from the mainland.Hide Caption 466 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWorkers at an airport in Novosibirsk, Russia, check the temperatures of passengers who arrived from Beijing on January 28, 2020.Hide Caption 467 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicUS Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar speaks during a news conference about the American public-health response.Hide Caption 468 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicTwo residents walk in an empty park in Wuhan on January 27, 2020. The city remained on lockdown for a fourth day.Hide Caption 469 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA person wears a protective mask, goggles and coat as he stands in a nearly empty street in Beijing on January 26, 2020.Hide Caption 470 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedical staff members bring a patient to the Wuhan Red Cross hospital on January 25, 2020.Hide Caption 471 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople wear protective masks as they walk under Lunar New Year decorations in Beijing on January 25, 2020.Hide Caption 472 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicConstruction workers in Wuhan begin to work on a special hospital to deal with the outbreak.Hide Caption 473 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicDr. Allison Arwady, commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health, speaks to reporters about a patient in Chicago who had been diagnosed with the coronavirus. The patient was the second in the United States to be diagnosed with the illness. Hide Caption 474 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA couple kisses goodbye as they travel for the Lunar New Year holiday in Beijing on January 24, 2020.Hide Caption 475 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicWorkers manufacture protective face masks at a factory in China's Hubei Province on January 23, 2020.Hide Caption 476 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicShoppers wear masks in a Wuhan market on January 23, 2020.Hide Caption 477 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPassengers are checked by a thermography device at an airport in Osaka, Japan, on January 23, 2020.Hide Caption 478 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople wear masks while shopping for vegetables in Wuhan on January 23, 2020.Hide Caption 479 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA militia member checks the body temperature of a driver in Wuhan on January 23, 2020.Hide Caption 480 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPassengers wear masks as they arrive at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila, Philippines, on January 23, 2020.Hide Caption 481 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA customer holds boxes of particulate respirators at a pharmacy in Hong Kong on January 23, 2020.Hide Caption 482 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPassengers wear masks at a high-speed train station in Hong Kong on January 23, 2020.Hide Caption 483 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicA woman rides an electric bicycle in Wuhan on January 22, 2020.Hide Caption 484 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople in Guangzhou, China, wear protective masks on January 22, 2020.Hide Caption 485 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicPeople go through a checkpoint in Guangzhou on January 22, 2020.Hide Caption 486 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicMedical staff of Wuhan's Union Hospital attend a gathering on January 22, 2020.Hide Caption 487 of 488 Photos: The coronavirus pandemicHealth officials hold a news conference in Beijing on January 22, 2020.Hide Caption 488 of 488Shortages in FranceNumerous French officials have also spoken about the difficulty of securing deliveries as other customers outbid them. French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe spoke Thursday of "difficulties sometimes in accessing the products from orders that are not always delivered. This is for a variety of reasons, including the huge demand that comes to China from the United States, from Europe, and indeed from the whole world."The presidents of two regions in France have alleged that American customers -- without specifying who -- had tried to pay Chinese suppliers three or four times the agreed price to get critical supplies diverted.Renaud Muselier, president of the Sud region, alleged in several interviews that an order from one unnamed French region had been bought by the Americans for cash -- and the plane that was due to fly to France had instead gone to the US. Muselier was asked by CNN affiliate BFM-TV whether masks had been taken by Americans at Chinese airports. He replied: "Exactly," before adding, "There is a foreign country that paid three times the price of the cargo on the tarmac. So the masks are gone and the region that ordered them has been destitute."Contacted by CNN, Muselier referred further questions to the French Foreign Ministry, which said Thursday it was looking into the reports.Jean Rottner, the president of another French region, Grand Est, echoed Muselier's remarks, telling French radio network RTL that it was a daily battle to secure orders. "It's true," he claimed, "that on the tarmac the Americans arrive, take out cash and pay three or four times more for the orders we have made, so it's necessary to fight."US coronavirus deaths surpassed 7,000. States say they're missing what they need to combat the virusContacted by CNN, Rottner's office would not elaborate on his claims, but a third regional president, Valérie Pécresse of Île-de-France, said the quest for masks was a global treasure hunt."We had made an order but were unable to complete it because others were ready to pay three times the market price," Pecresse told radio network Franceinfo. She did not identify the "others."It's unclear which US entity -- federal, state or commercial -- might have tried to secure orders destined for France. CNN reached out to the US Department of Health and Social Services Thursday but has not heard back. The US embassy in France, which only speaks for the federal government, said the US "has not purchased any masks intended for delivery from China to France."The Brazilian government has also claimed that US demand is vacuuming up available supplies. Health Minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta said Friday: "Our purchases [of respirator masks], that we expected to complete so that we could re-supply, a lot of them fell through."He added that the US was sending large cargo planes to China to bring protective medical equipment back to the country. "The same thing happened with respirators," Mandetta said. "We had bought them, they delivered the first part. The second, even with a contract, everything signed, with the money ready to pay, they said they no longer had them: 'We can't make that delivery.'"Spanish and French officials say that logistical bottlenecks in China have compounded the problem of shipping PPE. Spanish Health Minister Salvador Illa told a parliamentary committee in Madrid last week that everyone was trying to buy from China. "The market is crazy and the logistics are hard," he said.One French region, Centre Val de Loire, told CNN that its order had been diverted to Zhengzhou airport due to congestion at Shanghai airport. Several French regions told CNN that they'd had problems securing supplies. Bourgogne Franche Comté has ordered 4 million masks but are using two different suppliers in case one fails to deliver.Orders blockedIn the meantime, governments are requisitioning what they can -- testing existing relationships and alliances. Last month the French government said it was seizing all masks being made in the country. One French company, Valmy SAS, was obliged to divert an order for PPE from the UK's National Health Service, a regular customer. A representative of the company in the UK told CNN that the order had been blocked by customs officials at the French coast.The World Health Organization has warned for several weeks that hoarding and shortages of protective equipment is leaving doctors and nurses "dangerously ill equipped" to look after Covid-19 patients. A month ago, its director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said "prices of surgical masks have increased six-fold, N95 respirators have more than tripled, and gowns cost twice as much.""Supplies can take months to deliver, market manipulation is widespread, and stocks are often sold to the highest bidder," he said. Here's what health experts say about face masksAnd demand has only multiplied since.Several European governments have sounded the alarm about the difficulty of obtaining protective equipment for health workers. In Germany, the Bavarian state premier Markus Söder said Thursday that Germany would need "billions of masks" to fight coronavirus.German health minister Jens Spahn has said he wants Germany to become less dependent on masks made elsewhere. "We must become more independent of the world market, for the security of our citizens. That is one of the lessons of these weeks," he said on Twitter.In Spain, labor unions have complained about a lack of protective equipment for health workers. Last week Fernando Simon, director of the Center for Coordination of Emergencies and Health Alerts, said: "Although access to personal protective equipment is proving sufficient, it is true that at some points there may be critical moments." PPE, he said, was a scarce global commodity and there was no easy availability.Spanish Health Minister Salvador Illa said last week: "Not enough masks for the global market are being produced; not enough ventilators are being produced," Illa said. He was also critical of delays in a joint European Union program to buy PPE. France, Spain, Germany and the UK are all trying to accelerate domestic production of PPE as scarcities bite. But that's not something that can happen overnight in the volumes now needed as coronavirus stretches hospital resources across the world.Mia Alberti in Lisbon, CNN's Nadine Schmidt in Berlin, Laura Perez Maestro and Isa Tejara in Madrid, Max Ramsay in London and Kristen Holmes in Washington, DC contributed to this report.
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(CNN)Instead of eating turkey or opening presents, European Union ambassadors will spend part of Christmas Day reviewing the details of the bloc's post-Brexit trade deal with the United Kingdom.EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier will brief the Permanent Representatives Committee (COREPER), formed of ambassadors from EU nations, on the agreement, which was finalized on Thursday more than four years after the UK voted to leave the EU.The deal was reached after months of fraught negotiations and just days before the December 31 deadline which marks the end of the Brexit transition period.Barnier (C) lugs a folder containing the trade deal into the meeting with EU nation envoys in Brussel on Friday. EU leaders, the European Parliament and the UK Parliament all need to now approve the agreement on their own.British lawmakers will debate the legislation on December 30. The opposition Labour Party has said it will back the government's deal.Read MoreAll EU member states have sign off on the agreement, after which it will then go back to the European Parliament, where members will vote to ratify the deal.The European Parliament has said that it is too late to hold an emergency voting session before December 31.Instead, they plan to apply the EU-UK agreement "provisionally," with Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) reconvening formally to ratify the agreemend in the New Year. The Parliament will meet on December 28 to discuss the Christmas Eve deal.Key points from the dealZero tariffs and quotas on goodsThe end of free movement, meaning UK citizens will no longer have the right to work, live, study, or start a business in the EU without a visaBorder checks will apply between the UK and EU member statesThere will be no hard border on the island of Ireland between the Republic of Ireland and Northern IrelandThe UK will be able to further develop British fishing activities for at least 5-and-a-half years, during which time European fishing communities will be safeguardedA shared commitment to protecting the environment, to fight against climate change and carbon pricingA shared commitment to protecting social and labor rightsKeeping standards on tax transparencyPassengers' and workers' rights in the transport sectorThe UK's continued participation in a number of EU programs until 2027 such as Horizon Europe, subject to a UK financial contributionA summary of the deal has been published on the UK government's website.Speaking shortly after the announcement Thursday, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the agreement was a "good deal" for the "whole of Europe" -- one that signified "a new stability and a new certainty in what has sometimes been a fractious and difficult relationship."Echoing the nationalistic rhetoric that featured so prominently in the Brexit referendum campaign he said: "We've taken back control of our laws and our destiny...from January 1, we are outside the customs union and outside the single market; British laws will be made solely by the British parliament, interpreted by the UK judges sitting in UK courts; and the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice will come to an end."Brexit is finally done. It will leave the UK poorerJohnson claimed that the UK had achieved a "Canada-style" trade deal worth £660 billion (US $893 billion) and addressed the agreement on fisheries -- a key point of contention in the negotiations -- saying that the UK had taken back "full control" of its waters.European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU had struck a fair and balanced post-Brexit trade deal, but signaled that the bloc had the upper hand in the negotiations."As we knew, in any case, if there would have been a hard Brexit, it would not have been good for both sides, but it would have hit the United Kingdom harder than the European Union with all its might of 450 million citizens. And therefore, from a position of strength we were able to come forward with the most comprehensive agreement we've ever had," von der Leyen said at a news conference Thursday. "So to all Europeans, I say it is time to leave Brexit behind -- our future is made in Europe."Luke McGee and Kara Fox contributed to this story.
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Story highlightsJimmy Spithill joins Italians Luna Rossa The Australian is a two-time America's Cup winnerNext America's Cup is in New Zealand in 2021 (CNN)He's a two-time America's Cup-winning skipper but after Team USA's defeat in last year's event Australian Jimmy Spithill has jumped ship to join Italy's Luna Rossa.Spithill, whose US outfit suffered a heavy defeat by Emirates Team New Zealand in Bermuda, previously raced for the Italians during the America's Cup cycle in 2007.Follow @cnnsport
He earned the nickname "James Pitbull" for his aggressive tactics in taking Luna Rossa to the final of the challenger series before losing 5-0 to the Kiwis in Valencia, Spain."With his huge sports and technical experience on high-performance sailing boats, Jimmy brings additional strength to team Luna Rossa," said the syndicate on its website.Spithill made his debut in the America's Cup in 2000 and became the then youngest skipper to win the prestigious Auld Mug when he led America's BMW Oracle Racing to victory aged 31 in 2010. Read MoreHe defended it three years later with that remarkable comeback to win 9-8 against New Zealand in San Francisco, but lost his crown when 26-year-old Peter Burling steered the Kiwis to a resounding 7-1 win on Bermuda's Great Sound in June.Spithill was aged 30 when he won his first America's Cup."The America's Cup is a technology game and really the big question is how hard you push things, how extreme do you go on some of your design and engineering systems?," the 38-year-old Spithill told CNN Sport. "One team were a little bit more extreme and pushed the boundaries more. "When I look back when we won the America's Cup the previous two occasions, we were similar. We pushed as well. So potentially, maybe the fact that we won the first two made us a little bit more conservative."READ: How New Zealand gained America's Cup revengeSpithill won his first race at the age of 10.Spithill has said in the past of sailing: "The greatest thing about this sport is people judge you on your skill and talent, not your age."Beating the bulliesGrowing up in remote Elvina Bay, 35 kilometers north of Sydney, Spithill sailed from an early age, but he recently spoke of how being bullied as a child inspired him to succeed."This bullying was a bit tough for me to cope with then, but in the long run I think it made me a better person, giving me a thicker skin and greater determination to succeed," he wrote in "Chasing the Cup: My America's Cup journey." READ: Spithill talks winning, losing and bullyingREAD: The sports stars who fight back against online abuse Luna Rossa withdrew from the 2017 America's Cup campaign because of a disagreement over rule changes, but the Italian syndicate was first to challenge the victorious Kiwis to the next match, earning the title Challenger of Record. READ: Sailing's glamor tribe and the downside of paradiseThe 36th America's Cup will be held in New Zealand in March 2021. Instead of the foiling mutilhulls with rigid wing sails of the last two events, the competition will be sailed in 75-foot foiling monohulls.
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Barcelona, Spain (CNN)In an apartment off Barcelona's Passeig de Gracia shopping avenue, Rosario Caceres debated with her grandson over Catalonia's bid for independence from Spain.The 95-year-old lived through the Spanish Civil War, and then the dictatorship of Gen. Francisco Franco, who oppressed her people with an iron fist."We weren't allowed to speak Catalan in school. I had to teach it to my children again after Franco died," she said. "Naturally, I was very angry." Rosario Caceres, 95, center, with her grandson, David Rosello, left, and her daughter, Maria Victoria Cutrona.After all the turbulence she has seen in Spain, Caceres doesn't care for the current standoff between Madrid and Barcelona over independence."It feels just like the Civil War but without the bombs," she said with a laugh.Read More"In Franco's time we had no freedom of expression, but now this is all too much. I think we need to find something in the middle."The Catalan people will go to the polls next week to choose a new regional government, but voters will be casting their ballots as it if it were an official referendum on independence.There are few options for that "something in the middle."Caceres usually votes for the Socialists' Party of Catalonia, which is anti-independence but has been largely sidelined this election. But she isn't sure she will bother casting a ballot this time. She is old and doesn't always find it easy to leave the house. "But also there is only one issue — independence. No one is running a real campaign," she said.Support for the two sides is split right down the middle. One major change, however, is that the pro-independence side is fractured and is sending mixed messages on what to do next, after its unilateral declaration of independence in October went nowhere....there is only one issue — independence. No one is running a real campaign.Rosario CaceresThe central government called the December 21 vote in the hope of finding a more moderate government to deal with, following an illegally held independence referendum that triggered Spain's worst political crisis in decades. But Madrid may be disappointed to find that little has changed since. As the vote approaches, the two main pro-independence leaders are campaigning from prison and abroad. Oriol Junqueras -- whose pro-independence party, the Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC), is narrowly leading most polls -- is in a Madrid prison awaiting trail on charges of sedition and rebellion over his role in the referendum.The deposed Catalan president, Carles Puigdemont, is in Brussels to avoid facing the same fate as Junqueras: a possible jail term of up to 30 years.Inés Arrimadas from the Ciutadans party is leading the anti-independence side, campaigning to put an end to the independence movement altogether.An electronic campaign poster of Inés Arrimadas, lead candidate for the anti-independence Ciutadans party, at the Barcelona Sants train station.For Rosario Caceres, there isn't much choice. She told her grandson, 35-year-old David Rosello, that she was not necessarily against independence, but that it just didn't seem financially viable. Rosello told her he wasn't so worried about the economic implications."Madrid's treatment of us couldn't get any worse," he said. "I'm ready to try something new."How did Catalonia get here?JUST WATCHEDHundreds injured in Spain after referendumReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHHundreds injured in Spain after referendum 01:05Rosello was referring in part to violent scenes of Spanish police firing rubber bullets at relatively calm protesters and pulling elderly voters by the hair from polling booths.The police crackdown on the October 1 referendum prompted outrage that such violence was going on in modern-day Europe. It also fueled the independence movement's narrative that Catalonia is oppressed by Madrid.The Catalans' frustrations are not completely unfounded. In 2010, the Popular Party (PP) — which now rules the country — challenged Catalonia's status as a nation within Spain in the Constitutional Court. The party won that case and when the PP came into power, it began rolling back the autonomous region's powers.It has overturned several laws passed by the Catalan Parliament, including a ban on bullfighting, arguing that the Parliament was overstepping its authority and putting Spanish culture at risk.Read more: A political crisis is scaring tourists away from BarcelonaCatalans now mock Madrid as a strict parent that always says "No." Madrid has said it is open to dialogue with Barcelona, but only if independence is off the table.The independence movement picked up steam after that 2010 case, which came amid the economic woes of the global financial crisis.Before that turning point, only around 20% of people supported independence, when given four options with varying degrees of autonomy, according to Catalonia's Center for Opinion Studies. Support for independence peaked at 49% in 2013 but has now come down to below 40% with the four-way option.But when given a simple binary choice on independence, 48.7% say they want Catalonia to break away from Spain, while 43.6% do not. The rest are undecided. Many people argue that Madrid would have been smarter to simply allow the referendum. It would almost certainly have won if it ensured that there were more than two options on the ballot.Has the independence movement blown it? Carles Puigdemont, center, addresses Catalan mayors in Barcelona after Parliament declared unilateral independence on October 27. Oriol Bartomeus, a professor in politics at the Barcelona Autonomous University, suggests the movement has lost steam since the Catalan Parliament unilaterally declared independence in late October.Madrid responded by firing the entire government, dissolving the Catalan Parliament and imposing direct rule over the region."It is clear that support for the independist camp is not going up but that they are just maintaining the vote. That means they don't have 50% of the vote, and without 50% of the vote, they cannot push their agenda of independence, no matter what the Spanish state says," he said.Current polling numbers are almost identical to those just before the last election in 2015, in which pro-independence parties won just under half the seats and were forced into a coalition to take power.But in such divisive elections, polls can get it wrong. One notable trend is the steady rise of the anti-independence Ciutadans party. Led by 36-year-old Arrimadas, the party threatens to knock one of the two pro-independence groups from the top two spots. If Ciutadans continues its rise, the party could even gain the most seats. In Catalan politics, no single party is ever really expected to win an outright majority and elections are generally followed by weeks, if not months, of negotiations. And regardless of who wins the most seats on December 21, the question of who will be the next President is another matter entirely. After the 2015 election, Puigdemont was propelled to the presidency in a last-minute coalition deal.A crackdown on all things yellow?Firefighters place their helmets to form the shape of a giant yellow ribbon in Barcelona on November 20 to call for the release of jailed separatist activists.The bickering between Madrid and Barcelona has taken odd turns in this campaign, the latest one over the color yellow.Independence supporters are using the color to call for the release of jailed politicians and activists, but Madrid has complained that yellow has become politicized and is being used by public bodies that should be neutral. The country's electoral board — which goes by the name of the Junta Electoral in Spanish, but is called simply the Junta by its critics — has banned Barcelona from bathing its fountains in yellow light after Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's Popular Party complained about it.The city began illuminating the fountains with yellow after the president of the pro-independence Catalan National Assembly (ANC), Jordi Sanchez, was imprisoned, along with Òmnium Cultural's leader Jordi Cuixart, for helping organize the referendum. The two civil-society groups work closely with the pro-independence parties.The board has also banned election officials from wearing yellow ties on election day, and yellow is prohibited on all public buildings, as are any symbols showing support for those in prison.Read more: These banks and businesses are leaving CataloniaTensions are high and anger is easily roused. On Monday, scuffles broke out between the people of Lleida, west of Barcelona, and police who began seizing disputed artifacts from a museum there.The neighboring region of Aragón also claims the medieval artifacts as theirs, and Madrid used its special temporary powers over Catalonia to order the removal. In Girona, at the epicenter of the independence movement, the electoral board has also picked a fight with the City Hall.The Girona City Hall bears a banner reading "Freedom of Expression" in Catalan.The Junta Electoral forced the building to remove a banner reading: "Free Our Political Prisoners." In response, City Hall has replaced it with another, reading: "Freedom of Expression.""Because who can argue with that?" an official wearing a yellow ribbon said to CNN.What happens next?Carles Puigdemont addresses supporters at a campaign event on December 4.Meanwhile, Puigdemont has been speaking at his campaign events by teleconference, beamed in from Brussels onto giant screens.He has vowed to return to Catalonia if he wins on December 21, but speculation is beginning to swirl that he may return sooner.Junqueras is writing regular impassioned letters and notes from jail as his team portrays him to voters as Madrid's political prisoner.Elsa Artadi, who is running for a seat and is a spokeswoman for Puigdemont's Together for Catalonia campaign, said it had been incredibly difficult to promote the former president and his slate of candidates."We can't compete with these unequal conditions," she told CNN at the campaign headquarters in Barcelona.In the Catalan parliamentary system, a leader fields a list of candidates who are given a number in order of priority. Puigdemont's list has him at number one and at number two is Sanchez, who was imprisoned as leader of the ANC civil-society group."Our number one is in Brussels, our number two is in prison, our number three is in Brussels, our number four was in jail until a week ago. So that makes it very difficult logistically," Artadi said.Ernest Maragall, who is running for a seat with Junqueras' ERC party, also complains of an uneven playing field."We are playing a lot of basketball, but only with one arm," he said. Our number one is in Brussels, our number two is in prison... So that makes it very difficult logistically.Elsa ArtadiBartomeus, from the Barcelona Autonomous University, said that playing up the fact that crucial leaders in prison or abroad is an attempt to create a martyr effect."That's because the independist campaign is based on the idea that Spain is not a democratic state but an authoritarian one," he said. "You don't even have to say it, you just have to remind your voters that your leaders are in prison. And that is a very clear message."While there is anger about the imprisonments, it isn't necessarily translating to more votes.With less than a week left to go and polls refusing to budge, someone will have to have something extraordinary up their sleeve to swing the balance. Otherwise both the people of Catalonia and the rest of Spain may find themselves where this all began, their wounds unhealed.
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Story highlights'Muggsy' Bogues shortest-ever NBA playerTeammate Manute Bol stood 7 feet 7 inches tallBogues enjoyed remarkable 14-year career (CNN)As he approached the court, the crowd would raise their eyebrows and struggle to suppress their laughter: "This guy can't be serious ..." Who could blame them? At just 5 feet 3 inches, Tyrone "Muggsy" Bogues is the shortest player in the NBA's history. If the NBA court is Goliath's realm, Bogues was its David. Living proof that size doesn't matter, his was an ascent that took him from the Baltimore projects to the world stage, as the point guard mixed it with the NBA's big boys in an exceptional 14-year career, scoring more than 6,800 points before retiring in 2001. Don't ever let any one tell you, you can't. Remember today, YOU CAN! #MuggsyMondays A photo posted by Muggsy Bogues (@therealmuggsy) on Sep 21, 2015 at 7:12am PDT
Initially, Bogues harbored no dreams of reaching such heights. "I was just trying to play the game, having fun", he told CNN. "It was a hobby for me at the time."Read MoreOpen-bottomed milk crates were Bogues' baskets and the streets were his court. "I was playing and having a lot of success, but I also felt a lot of criticism behind it. I didn't know why," he shrugs.It didn't take long for Bogues to find out. "People had started talking about my size, how short I was ... saying some cruel things." Not that he let the doubters get him down: "I just wanted to play the game, and I kept playing."Tenacity allied to a relentless approach to defense allowed him to "mug" his neighborhood opponents -- hence the nickname. He chased the bigger men like an unwanted noontime shadow. "I was stealing the ball from all the guys. Every time they dribbled the ball I used to take it and I'd go down the court and I'd either lay it up myself or I'd pass it to one of my teammates. I was getting a lot of excitement from that; I felt good about doing that." Photos: 'It's only impossible until it's done' Photos: 'It's only impossible until it's done'At 5 feet 3 inches tall, Tyrone "Muggsy" Bogues is the smallest player in NBA history. Here, 6-feet-7-inch forward Rafael Addison stoops to Muggsy's level during a game against the Dallas Mavericks in Texas in 1997. Hide Caption 1 of 7 Photos: 'It's only impossible until it's done'Bogues fights in vain to block the shot of Derek Anderson, during the Toronto Raptors' 95-94 win over the Los Angeles Clippers in 2000.Hide Caption 2 of 7 Photos: 'It's only impossible until it's done'Bogues stands alongside Charlotte Hornets coach Dave Cowens during a win over the Washington Bullets -- his first NBA team. Bogues was the No. 12 overall pick in the first round of the 1987 draft. Hide Caption 3 of 7 Photos: 'It's only impossible until it's done'Bogues in action for the Hornets against LA Lakers legend Magic Johnson during the 1990-91 NBA season.Hide Caption 4 of 7 Photos: 'It's only impossible until it's done'"Down here!" Bogues tries in vain to oppose guard Brian Shaw of the Orlando Magic.Hide Caption 5 of 7 Photos: 'It's only impossible until it's done'Bogues showcases his extraordinary vertical reach during a Hornets game against the Chicago Bulls in 1994. He defied his small stature and was able to jump 44 inches, among the highest figures in NBA history. Hide Caption 6 of 7 Photos: 'It's only impossible until it's done'David meets Goliath: Muggsy holds the ball during an exhibition game between the "USA Legends of Basketball" and a Germany/Luxemburg All Star team in 2009. Bogues was greeted with incredulity wherever he went. Today, he's remembered as a legend. Hide Caption 7 of 7Even so, the downward glances and derisive whispers were never far away. He mimics the supercilious remarks of his former doubters -- "'You're too short: You'll never be able to play high school or NBA or college'" -- with the untroubled tone of a man who knows he came out on top.He recalls thinking to himself "I'm just going to keep on playing without looking back."And he did. There is nothing better than the connection between teammates. Thankful to have been able to play with some of the best A photo posted by Muggsy Bogues (@therealmuggsy) on Jun 4, 2015 at 1:32pm PDT
Bogues went from being named the Most Valuable Player in the recreational leagues to the Most Valuable Player on arguably the greatest high school team of all time: the famed Dunbar High School team of 1983, featuring future NBA stars David Wingate, Reggie Williams and Reggie Lewis. "Each year, you keep on moving up the ladder," says Bogues, who went on to play college basketball for Wake Forest in the rugged Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), breaking records for career assists and steals.Nevertheless, when the Washington Wizards (then known as Washington Bullets) selected him as the No. 12 overall pick in the first round of the 1987 NBA Draft -- ahead of standouts Mark Jackson and former Dunbar teammate Reggie Lewis -- the skeptics had a field day.Muggsy's frustration was less about the focus on his stature; more the shade those comments cast over his talent. "It was never about my skills," says Bogues."People looked at my size as a disadvantage, but I looked at it as an advantage. Whatever I had in my arsenal I had to use." Don't let anyone ever tell you that you CAN'T. You CAN and you WILL A photo posted by Muggsy Bogues (@therealmuggsy) on Jun 2, 2015 at 11:41am PDT
His was an arsenal that included a prodigious ability to shift. "Speed was one of the criteria for me -- one of my strengths. But I had to use them all ... everything I had," he says. As well as his quickness across the court, Bogues had another priceless asset. "My IQ level was very high ... I saw things before they even happened."The guys that were around me -- I understood how to make them better. That's a form of leadership," he enthuses. My weakness turned out to be my greatest strength. Never doubt yourself! A photo posted by Muggsy Bogues (@therealmuggsy) on Feb 6, 2015 at 7:37am PST
After just one year in Washington -- where he famously teamed up with the tallest-ever NBA player, the 7-feet-7-inch Manute Bol -- Bogues wound up steering the newly formed Charlotte Hornets.Along with teammates Larry Johnson and Alonzo Mourning, Bogues made the Hornets buzz -- so much so that he remains the 18th all-time assist leader in the NBA. Bogues was a player that cherished the basketball; indeed, as well as providing over 6,000 assists, Bogues' assist to turnover ratio was consistently up there with the best in the league.Manute Bol & Muggsy Bogues: teammates, and the tallest/shortest players in the history of the NBA. 1987-88. pic.twitter.com/MLeVxFwUgx— Historical Images (@Historicalmages) January 7, 2016
If Muggsy was the NBA's smallest ever player, he possessed one of the biggest leaps of all time. "I could dunk!" he insists -- though he was never able to in the flow of a NBA game, mainly because of his small hands."If I had a viable ball, a basketball that was going perfectly, I could ..." #TBT I believe I can fly.... A photo posted by Muggsy Bogues (@therealmuggsy) on Sep 18, 2014 at 7:40am PDT
To see Bogues in full flight is to marvel at one of sport's most unlikely sights. "I had a 44-inch vertical, so I was able to get up there -- but I understood that it was just two points."Never carried away by the joy of scoring, Bogues was in his element doing the dirty work that every sport demands."A dunk was just two points. It's exciting, you get the crowd up, but it's just two."Besides, he says: "That wasn't a part of my game; that wasn't my strength. God didn't give me that type of talent to do that. He gave me other means to figure this thing out ... to maneuver, to be part of it."If you didn't know who I was, your mindset [was]: 'I'm just going to dominate this little kid, shoot over the top of him, there's no way he can affect my shot,'" Bogues muses.That kind of thinking played right into Bogues' hands."I understood what goes into the game," he says. "And, having that understanding, it allowed me to play my game very aggressively, you know, and change the game. "I changed the game defensively as a small guy, just like the impact of a 7-footer like a Patrick Ewing, or a Dikembe Mutombo or a Hakeem Olajuwon," he adds."I had it on a smaller version by guarding the ball, making it tough for the [big] guys."Bogues' talents didn't just stop at the basketball court -- his is legacy further guaranteed by his cameo in cult film, "Space Jam."He appears alongside not only Bugs Bunny, but Michael Jordan, Ewing, Charles Barkley, Shawn Bradley and Larry Johnson -- fitting company for one of the most recognizable individuals to ever play the game.A 5-feet-3-inch man in the league of giants; it's only impossible until it's done. Tyrone 'Muggsy' Bogues -- he's still got it #NBALondon16 pic.twitter.com/79wUzVGykH— CNN Sport (@cnnsport) January 15, 2016
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(CNN)It's been a dizzying week of gossip and speculation for Meghan Markle's father days before one of the most anticipated weddings of the year. The American actress will wed Prince Harry on Saturday at St. George's Chapel in Windsor Castle in a ceremony watched by millions around the world. But while she's largely stayed out of the spotlight in the days leading up to the wedding, the father of the bride has been busy making headlines worldwide with one theme -- will he be there or won't he?Thomas Markle has given multiple interviews to celebrity news site TMZ on whether he'll walk his famous daughter down the aisle -- saying in the latest that he won't.At first, the former Hollywood lighting director was expected to play a key role on his daughter's big day, but it emerged Tuesday that he could miss the wedding because of heart surgery.Read MoreThe announcement marked the latest twist after accusations that he posed for wedding preparation photos for a paparazzi agency. After the revelation, he pulled out of the wedding, reportedly saying he doesn't want to embarrass the royal family or his daughter. Thomas Markle drops off flowers at his ex-wife Doria Ragland's home days before the wedding. Close ties despite divorce Whether or not he attends the wedding, the father and daughter share a close relationship by all accounts. Meghan is said to be upset about the staged photos, but still wants her father to walk her down the aisle.Markle divorced Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland, in the 1980s but has remained part of his daughter's life. In a 2016 message titled "Happy Father's Day" posted on her now-deleted Instagram account, Meghan Markle paid tribute to him.More on Meghan MarkleThe reason Thomas Markle is being vilified Meghan's father ay not attend wedding due to surgeryMeghan, Harry ask for privacy for father Meghan is rewriting the princess storyHow Meghan will use her royal voice"Thanks for my work ethic, my love of Busby Berkeley films & club sandwiches, for teaching me the importance of handwritten thank you notes, and for giving me that signature Markle nose. I love you," she reportedly posted. Meghan has said she spent most of her childhood hanging out at her father's job after school."Every day after school for 10 years, I was on the set of 'Married ... with Children,' which is a really funny and perverse place for a little girl in a Catholic school uniform to grow up," she told Esquire in 2013. "There were a lot of times my dad would say, 'Meg, why don't you go and help with the craft services room over there? This is just a little off-color for your 11-year-old eyes.' " Thomas Markle is being vilified for one reason: he's AmericanThose days on the set with her father shaped her career. In the interview, she said he'd call and offer her advice on lighting while she was on television show "Suits." "... [M]y dad will be the first person to call me and say like, 'Why aren't you using this sort of lighting gel?' The crew guys know that it's where I grew up," she said. Meghan said in the 2013 interview that her father had retired about six years earlier. She recalled watching the credits at the end of "Married .. with Children" episodes and giving the screen a kiss when she saw his name go by. 'Draw your own box'Long before she turned into a Hollywood star, Meghan struggled with her biracial identity. She's said her father helped her realize she doesn't need to pick one race over the other. When she was in seventh grade, her English teacher asked her to check the ethnicity box for Caucasian on a census, which made her feel like she was choosing one parent over anotherWhen she told her father about the incident, he was angry.
'"If that happens again, you draw your own box," she said he told her, according to Elle UK. The issue of race would be a confusing thread throughout Meghan's early years. When she was 7, she wanted a doll set that came in either an all-white or all-black family. Her father took apart the doll packages and mixed a black mom doll, a white dad doll and two children of both races, and gave them to her as a Christmas gift."My dad had taken the sets apart and customized my family," she wrote. He lives in Mexico Thomas Markle lives in the Mexican beach city of Rosarito, where he was photographed by a paparazzo in the apparently staged photos over the past few weeks.Her half-sister Samantha Markle has added to the controversy by leaking details on their father even as Kensington Palace has requested that journalists respect his privacy. The estranged sibling has said their father suffered a heart attack after reports emerged that Thomas Markle may not attend the royal wedding on Saturday. Samantha Markle says her father staged the photographs to improve his image. While Samantha Markle has reportedly not spoken to her sister for several years, she has not been shy about making media rounds. She did not specify the timing of her father's heart attack, but told the "Good Morning Britain" program that while she's concerned for his health, she did not want him to miss out on the big day."I wanted to see him go. I didn't want him deprived of that. But clearly the propriety should be whether or not it is safe for him to do that," Markle added.Samantha Markle has previously said she was the one who had encouraged their father to stage the photos in an ill-fated bid to improve his image. He was to meet with the royal familyBoth of Meghan's parents were due to fly into the UK in the days before the wedding. Once there, they are expected to spend time with the British royal family, including Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh. Prince Harry has yet to meet his fiancée's father.CNN's Laura Said-Moorhouse contributed to this report.
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Story highlightsSevens players are some of the world's fittest athletesThese training sessions keep them sharp (CNN)England's rugby sevens players have a secret weapon, but to find it they have to dig deep.It lies at the end of a grueling fitness regime which involves recreating the state of utter exhaustion the body experiences in the "death zone," a term used by mountain climbers to describe extreme altitudes above 8,000 meters where the air is so thin the human body rapidly deteriorates.This is when oxygen levels in the blood are lowered drastically; breathing is a struggle, thinking becomes fuzzy, and muscle fatigue is accelerated. Pushing their bodies to the limit, while still being able to make tactical decisions, is the key.Former Ireland captain Brian O'Driscoll -- one of the greatest players to play the game's 15-a-side code -- described these training sessions as taking yourself to a "dark place."Read MoreThe thinking is that training and practicing at a much higher intensity makes competitive matches comparatively easier. "You can think right, OK, I'll be working at 110 percent so that when you're working at 95 percent you can make good decisions and you can make the right choices and stuff like that," England forward Phil Burgess tells CNN. "Our coaches work together to create those sessions that allow us to train at that level so that when we get on the field of play we can perform and make those good decisions and make those good plays."The challenge, then, is as much mental as it is physical. "The thing that gets you through it is your head," Burgess continues. "Your body can give up, but your mind will overcome that and you can run yourself into the ground. That's the interesting thing that sevens specifically has taught me -- you're fitter than you think you are. You can push yourself with your head as opposed to just your body."READ: England going 'hell for leather' for Olympic berthJUST WATCHEDFiji's spectacular sand dune workout.ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHFiji's spectacular sand dune workout. 01:30'He seemed to have two hearts'Sevens has long been seen as a home for rugby's fastest sprinters, and while it is true that searing pace is one of the game's most prized assets, just as important is the stamina required to run fast over and over again. This is where the yo-yo test comes in, even the mention of which is enough to make England's sevens players shudder. "When you find out you're going to do the yo-yo it's like, oh, gosh. There's always that sinking feeling in your stomach," winger Dan Norton tells CNN. "When it gets dark, it gets pretty dark."Some plastic cones and a tape recording are all that are required to summon this world of pain. Participants have to run two 20-meter shuttles in time with a beep, with a 10-second rest between efforts. As the levels progress, the speed increases until the legs and lungs can take no more. A civilian with a decent level of fitness might manage to get to about level 15, but England's players are expected to get over 19. Some of them even breeze past that. "I think my best has been around 21 or 21.2," says Norton, rugby sevens' all-time record try-scorer. "Somewhere around the 21 mark anyway. "The best I've seen is probably like a 22.2, 22.5 ... One guy, John Brake, he used to play sevens and seemed to have two hearts. He could get round about that level. So yeah, there are some fit guys out there."READ: Indian movie star on his passion for rugbyIt's a test of speed, endurance and how quickly your body recovers between sprints. Players will end up pushing themselves to an aerobic limit they would rarely achieve during a match, which reaps rewards."It's kind of a similar state you're in when you're playing the whole time," explains Norton. "There's always that cloud of fatigue and your decision making is impaired, your vision's impaired, and you're feeling a bit dizzy."But that kind of makes the whole thing so much more enjoyable -- knowing that you can still produce the goods at those levels as well."Dan Norton shows his speed at last year's Paris Sevens.Building strengthSpeed and endurance, of course, is just one aspect of a sevens player's fitness program. After the yo-yo test comes carrying and wrestling exercises. These can be done with weights, but the England Sevens coaches often have players use each other to perform the drills, replicating as closely as possible the tackle situation in games. The challenge here is not just to have the strength to carry your teammate, but also to adopt the correct body position. Get it slightly wrong and the lift becomes substantially harder.It's tackling practice as much as it's strength building. READ: South Africa stages remarkable comeback to win Singapore SevensNo weights are required for the next part of the session, either -- a nine-minute ab routine involving crunches, holds, and leg lifts -- before the session moves to the gym to end in the same way it began -- with another dreaded "maximal" test.Developed by the British cycling team as a way to measure the power a rider produces, Wattbikes are a unique form of torture. Just one kilometer is the standard test for an England Sevens players. The tactic, says Burgess, is to go all out from the start and try to hang on until the bitter end. Staring at the digital display through a haze of fatigue and willing the numbers towards the kilometer mark is the definition of suffering. England players are expected to get close to -- or under -- a minute. "It hasn't got easier," says Norton, reflecting on the numerous fitness sessions he has undergone over the course of his 10-year sevens career. "The issue with when you get fitter is that you can just endure more."You probably get experience of how to kind of beat the test a bit more, understand the nuances where you can kind of push the envelope a bit. You do and you don't enjoy it, it's the nature of the beast."Training on your own is pretty bleak because you haven't got anybody pushing you, no one's really watching, and you can potentially skive a few reps, whereas here, everybody's watching you. You're all competing and there's a good level of banter. You don't want to be that one person who's missing out on something."England Sevens' Jamie Barden carries teammate Norton under the instruction of Phil Burgess.Visit CNN.com/sport for more news, views and featuresIt was five weeks ago that the England Sevens team last took to the field in Singapore for a tournament, so recently there has been plenty of opportunities to push their bodies to the max -- in the gym and on the training field.The players will be hoping that their brutal fitness regime -- and all the camaraderie that comes with it -- will pay dividends when they run out on home soil at the London Sevens this weekend. The HSBC London Sevens takes place at Twickenham Stadium 25-26 May 2019.
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(CNN)Speaking to reporters last week, Bill Belichick was asked if he's gotten to know his Super Bowl LIII opponent, Rams head coach Sean McVay."Yeah, I know him," the 66-year-old Patriots head coach said, which is about the extent of acknowledgment many have come to expect from the man who doesn't give much away.But McVay clearly has the attention of Belichick (more on that later), who has the most Super Bowl titles (five) of all time, as well as the rest of the NFL.This will be Belichick's ninth Super Bowl appearance. It's the first for McVay, who, at 33, is the youngest coach in Super Bowl history.And he is viewed as the NFL's next prodigy.Read More"Working with him, man, it's a good feeling just to have him as our coach," Rams running back Todd Gurley said. "He's a players' coach. He's a great guy. You can talk to him, you can understand and he does everything for a reason. He does everything for us, for the team. So, you love playing for a guy like that."McVay with Gerald Everett after defeating the New Orleans Saints in the NFC Championship game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on January 20 in New Orleans.A historic hireIn January 2017, the Los Angeles Rams announced their next head football coach. But this wasn't just any hire.When it was revealed the choice was McVay, it sent shockwaves throughout the league. At 30 years old, he was the youngest head coach in NFL history.But despite his age, McVay already had several years' experience in the league. And his ability to recall plays -- even ones from a few years ago -- is mind-blowing. A clip from Bleacher Report went viral when McVay was quizzed about specific plays from 2015. McVay did the same thing for HBO's Real Sports back in July.Rams HC Sean McVay literally remembers every play of his coaching career 😲 pic.twitter.com/r9gC2mcajM— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 13, 2018
Rams quarterback Jared Goff, then just off his rookie season, recently recalled having a good impression when McVay interviewed for the job."As I was leaving the meeting, (I) got a pretty good idea that he would be the one chosen and was very excited for it," Goff, now 24, said. "It was awesome and it has turned out pretty well, I think."Chief Operating Officer Kevin Demoff, McVay and general manager Les Snead of the Los Angeles Rams stand for a photo after announcing McVay's hiring as head coach.Coming from a football familyMcVay, who was born in 1986, started making connections at a very young age with NFL players around the San Francisco 49ers organization. His grandfather, John McVay, was inducted into the 49ers Hall of Fame for his success in the team's front office, helping construct 49ers rosters that won five Super Bowls in the 1980s and 1990s. Playing football also runs in McVay's family. His father, Tim, played at Indiana, and his uncle, John, played for Miami University in the mid-1970s. When McVay was in high school in Atlanta, he led Marist School to a state championship in 2003. He spent his college days as a wide receiver at Miami University in Ohio from 2004-2007. McVay's coaching career began in 2008, as an assistant wide receivers coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He spent 2009 as a tight ends coach with the Florida Tuskers in the United Football League. In 2010, he joined Washington as an offensive assistant and was the tight ends coach from 2011-2013. He then spent three seasons as Washington's offensive coordinator, helping develop quarterback Kirk Cousins.McVay's Rams have reached the playoffs twice in his tenure.In his two years at the helm, the Rams have reached the playoffs twice. Now, he's heading back to Atlanta for Super Bowl LIII against Belichick and the Patriots."Yeah, it means I've got a lot more people bothering me about tickets," McVay said last week with a laugh. "No, it -- Atlanta, specifically where I went to high school at Marist, that place has been great to me. So many influential coaches that really pour into you. They teach you about how to be a man, how to handle -- whether it be success or some adversity -- and that's what's real."Some of my closest friends in life are guys that I was able to play high school football with," he said. "So, there's ... people that will be able to be at that game that are very important to me, but this is about the Rams going and playing in the Super Bowl."It is unique that it's in Atlanta, but we're going there to try to win a football game and then there will be some people that are very special to me and my family that'll get a chance to not have to travel too far to be there as well."McVay's win against the Saints came a few days before his 33rd birthday.Coincidentally, the one Super Bowl that McVay attended as a 14-year-old fan was Super Bowl XXXIV in 2000, when the Rams last won and when he lived in Atlanta. The tickets were a birthday present from the elder McVay, who was still working in the NFL at the time.Nineteen years later, the grandfather will be watching the grandson."He'll be at the game," McVay said. "What he's meant to me and to our family and just the way that he's handled himself and the perspective that he has -- he's seen it from both ends of the spectrum. He's been a coach. He's also had an intricate role from a front office standpoint, and he's been a part of a championship organization that was able to sustain for a long period of time."McVay: Belichick texted him throughout the seasonMcVay says his grandfather is a great reference for him. But there's also Belichick. Before the Rams came calling, McVay first met Belichick and Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels."We practiced against those guys when I was in Washington early on and kind of kept in contact with them," McVay said. "They're a team that you're always watching the way they do things, and you just have so much respect for the way that they've operated over the last handful of years."According to NBC's Peter King, McVay says Belichick has texted him after games.McVay's first Super Bowl comes against Bill Belichick, with whom the Rams coach says he's texted this season."I've gotten to know Bill -- we talked at the combine last year -- so that's been cool," McVay told King. "He was really great in the conversation we had, really enlightening."This is wild: This season, he has basically texted me after every one of our games. After we beat Minnesota in September, he texted, 'Man, you guys are really explosive and impressive and fun to watch. Congratulations -- keep it rolling.' For him to even take the time to say congrats, it's pretty cool. That's one of the things I like about our business, our fraternity of coaches. As competitive as it is, guys find time to share when they can. I'm still young, still figuring it out. That stuff's been really helpful to me."While Belichick hasn't really elaborated on his relationship with McVay, he did have glowing things to say last week about the Rams' head coach, who is half of his age."I have a ton of respect for Sean," Belichick said. "I think he's done a great job in the two years he's been with the Rams. His teams have performed at an extremely high level. They're very consistent. They're well-coached. He has a great scheme. The players execute it on a consistent basis at a very high level."He's got a great coaching staff. Offense, defense, special teams -- they're good in every area. ... I think he's done an outstanding job. I have a ton of respect for the way his team has played and how well they play and what he's accomplished out there, and in his entire career, but as a head coach in the last two years."
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Story highlightsLong fight for truth over disaster in which 96 fans diedPolice planning errors caused or contributed to disasterJurors find fan behavior played no part in tragedy (CNN)After more than two years, a British inquest into the 1989 Hillsborough soccer stadium tragedy in which 96 men, women and children died, has delivered its verdicts on a series of key questions. It is the longest case heard by a jury in British legal history.The jury's findings include:-- The 96 Liverpool fans who died in the Hillsborough disaster were unlawfully killed, jurors concluded by a 7-2 majority.-- Match commander Chief Superintendent David Duckenfield's actions amounted to "gross negligence" due to breach of his duty of care to fans.-- Police planning errors caused or contributed to the dangerous situation that developed on the day of the disaster. Read More-- The 96 victims were killed due to crushing following the admission of a large number of fans through an exit gate.-- Fan behavior did not cause or contribute to the tragedy.-- Both the police and the ambulance service caused or contributed to the loss of life by error or omission after the crush had begun to develop-- The UK Crown Prosecution Service will now consider criminal charges.-- Individual inquest into the 96 show times of death between 14.57 and 16.50-- Relatives of victims sing Liverpool Football Club anthem "You'll Never Walk Alone" as they emerge from court in Warrington after verdicts delivered.-- Club hails inquest findings as "a landmark day for all affected by the Hillsborough tragedy."JUST WATCHEDFamilies break out in song after Hillsborough verdictReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHFamilies break out in song after Hillsborough verdict 01:39READ: Mother 'denied final cuddle with dead son'Pete Weatherby, a lawyer representing some of the bereaved families, told a Hillsborough Justice Campaign news conference: "The jury has vindicated the long, long journey of the families to obtain justice and make those responsible for the disaster accountable."Mr Weatherby said there had been "concerted attempts to cover up" what happened and paid tribute to the "dignity and tenacity" of the families in their battle for justice."The disaster was entirely avoidable and caused by catastrophic human failure," he said, focusing on what he called "a catastrophic policing failure by South Yorkshire Police."Mr Weatherby said the families had been forced to endure "lies by senior officers and vile abuse in parts of the media" in the years after the tragedy in what he said was "a culture of denial writ large."Barry Devonside, who lost his 18-year-old son Chris at Hillsborough, told the news conference: "South Yorkshire Police and senior officers tried to deflect the blame onto the supporters."That campaign to deny the truth came to an end with the conclusions of the inquest."Mr Devonside thanked the jurors for their "remarkable commitment."Stephen Wright, the brother of Graham Wright, who was 17 when he died in the disaster, said: "Our loved ones could have lived but for the gross failings of the police."David Crompton, the Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police, said in a statement after the inquest verdicts were delivered that the force had got the policing of the match "catastrophically wrong."He said: "I want to make it absolutely clear that we unequivocally accept the verdict of unlawful killing and the wider findings reached by the jury in the Hillsborough inquests."On 15th April 1989, South Yorkshire Police got the policing of the FA Cup semifinal at Hillsborough catastrophically wrong. "The force failed the victims and failed their families. Today, as I have said before, I want to apologize unreservedly to the families and all those affected."He added that the force "will now take time to carefully reflect on the implications of the verdicts."In a statement, Liverpool FC chief executive officer Ian Ayre said: "After 27 long years the true verdict has finally been delivered, confirming what the families always believed -- their loved ones were unlawfully killed."Liverpool Football Club welcomes the jury's decision, once and for all, that our supporters were not in any way responsible for what happened at Hillsborough."Hillsborough disaster: 'Any fan would have known people were in trouble'In his office in Yorkshire, Trevor Hicks takes a worn yellow envelope out of a binder. He carefully folds back the flap, pulling out a pair of gold hoop earrings and a small, square piece of paper. The items belonged to his youngest daughter, and they are all he has left from the day everything changed.He looks at the crinkled piece of paper that was her match ticket. "Well it was a death pass, wasn't it, in the end?" he says quietly.April 15, 1989, began like any other big match day. Liverpool Football Club was to play Nottingham Forest in the semifinals of England's FA Cup. The chosen venue was a neutral ground -- Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, the home of Sheffield Wednesday.Trevor and Jenni Hicks with their daughters Vicki (far left) and SarahFans of both teams flocked to the stadium from across the country. Among them were the Hicks family -- Trevor, his wife Jenni, and their two teenage daughters, Sarah and Vicki."It was the one thing we did as a family," Trevor says. "Support Liverpool Football Club."The girls were avid fans. They knew stats about all the players, and had posters on their walls. The 1980s were a great time to be a Liverpool supporter. The team had dominated English and European competitions for years, and the expectations for 1989 were no different.The 14 questions the jurors were askedRead: Liverpool defeat Dortmund in Europa League thriller Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesNinety-six Liverpool fans died during the FA Cup semifinal against Nottingham Forest at Sheffield Wednesday's Hillsborough stadium on April 15, 1989.Hide Caption 1 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesThe game was stopped at six minutes past three. Moments before the players were taken off the pitch, fans had begun climbing over fences behind Liverpool goalkeeper Bruce Grobbelaar's goal to escape the crush.Hide Caption 2 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesPeople used advertising boards as makeshift stretchers to help the victims of the disaster.Hide Caption 3 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesIn the immediate aftermath, people from throughout Britain left tributes at Liverpool's Anfield stadium.Hide Caption 4 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesA Liverpool supporter pays his respects outside Anfield in September 2012, weeks before Britain's police watchdog said it would launch the biggest-ever independent inquiry into potential police wrongdoing after a damning report on the disaster.Hide Caption 5 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesTributes are left at Anfield's Bill Shankly gates in 2012, soon after the Hillsborough Independent Panel had revealed its findings.Hide Caption 6 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesA man walks past "Justice for the 96" graffiti near Anfield soon after the High Court quashed verdicts of accidental death on December 19, 2012. New inquests into the disaster were ordered.Hide Caption 7 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesFloral tributes are left at Anfield on each anniversary of the tragedy.Hide Caption 8 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesA poster protesting about the way in which Liverpool fans were blamed for Hillsborough is displayed outside Anfield in 2012. The club's supporters boycotted, and continue to boycott, "The Sun" newspaper due to its coverage of the deaths. In the aftermath of the Hillsborough Independent Panel report that year, the paper issued an apology for what it said were "false reports."Hide Caption 9 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesFloral tributes are laid in memory of the victims on the 25th anniversary of Hillsborough, prior to a Premier League match between Liverpool and Manchester City at Anfield on April 13, 2014.Hide Caption 10 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesA young Liverpool fan stands next to floral tributes laid in memory of the victims on the 25th anniversary.Hide Caption 11 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesThe young fan wears a shirt calling for justice for the 96 victims.Hide Caption 12 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesThe Liverpool players link arms as they join a silence for the victims in 2014.Hide Caption 13 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesFans in the Kop stand at Anfield display banners in memory of the Hillsborough victims. Hide Caption 14 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesThe Hillsborough Justice Campaign was set up to support those affected by the disaster, including the families of its victims and those who survived.Hide Caption 15 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesFans, players and officials mark the Hillsborough anniversary before the Premier League match between Liverpool and Newcastle at Anfield in 2015.Hide Caption 16 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesThe coroner's court set up to hear the inquests into the 96 Liverpool fans who died in Hillsborough is in Warrington, north-west England.Hide Caption 17 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesDonna Miller, the sister of victim Paul Carlile, arrives on the opening day of the new inquest into the Hillsborough deaths.Hide Caption 18 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesMary Corrigan, whose son Keith McGrath died in the disaster, arrives at the inquest in Warrington.Hide Caption 19 of 20 Photos: Hillsborough disaster: The inquest concludesCoroner Lord Justice Goldring (centre) walks outside the Leppings Lane stand at Hillsborough as jurors examine the scene of the disaster. The cones show the layout of the area outside the ground as it had been in 1989.Hide Caption 20 of 20'The English disease'But football itself was very different back then. It was scarred by hooliganism, with a minority of fans prone to drunkenness, organized violence and pitch invasions. In the prevailing attitude, all fans were painted with that brush. Across Europe, football hooliganism had become known as the "English disease."Four years before Hillsborough, 39 fans had been killed in a stadium stampede at a European Cup final between Liverpool and Italian club Juventus.Football grounds were also different. In the 1980s, the amount of seating was often limited, with many supporters instead standing on tiered concrete steps known as terraces. Because of the problem of hooliganism, fences were constructed around these terraces, splitting them into individual pens and keeping fans corralled inside from the sides and the front. On top of that, most stadiums were old and decrepit, not in any shape to be holding the number of people that they did."The condition of the stadiums... we took it for granted," says Phil Scraton, researcher and author of the book Hillsborough: The Truth. "We would cheer when people were handed down who fainted [on the terraces], and they were handed down to the front and passed over to the ambulance people. We cheered -- it was just part of the way it was."Read: Spirit of Shankly -- the abandoned village that bred footballers'I desperately wanted to stand with the girls'On April 15, 1989, more than 50,000 football fans wove their way through the residential streets surrounding Hillsborough. The Leppings Lane end of the ground would be dedicated to Liverpool's fans. Nearly half of them were expected to pass, single-file, through just 23 narrow turnstiles that led to the terracing on the lower level of the two-deck stand.Included in that group was the Hicks family. "We had three tickets for the standing and one for the seating," says Jenni. "I desperately wanted to stand with the girls but, as it turned out, it was the girls who said: 'No mum, you're too little. You won't be able to see.'"JUST WATCHEDLiverpool players remember Hillsborough disasterReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHLiverpool players remember Hillsborough disaster 04:17Jenni went off to her seat. Trevor wanted a cup of coffee, so the girls went down a tunnel marked "standing" that led to central pens three and four of the Leppings Lane terrace.Back outside the turnstiles, a crush was beginning to develop. There were too many people trying to get through as kickoff approached. One decision made by police to ease the growing congestion outside the stand would prove to have devastating consequences inside.The order to open Gate COn matchday, Chief Superintendent David Duckenfield, of South Yorkshire Police, had a big task ahead of him. Just two weeks earlier, he had been assigned as the officer in charge of the Hillsborough semifinal. It was his first big match.Faced with the overcrowding at the Leppings Lane turnstiles, Duckenfield made a decision. He gave the order to open Gate C, an exit gate, to ease the crush of Liverpool supporters trying to get in. An additional 2,000 fans streamed in but, once inside, there were no officials on hand to tell them where to go. All they saw was the tunnel marked standing, taking them into pens three and four, which were already over-full."It didn't look right to me when I first took my seat," Jenni recalls. "All the supporters seemed to be in the middle.""As things developed, you could see there was not just the normal crush in there," Trevor adds.'It was obvious it wasn't a pitch invasion'The game kicked off, as scheduled, at 3pm. Jenni doesn't even remember that happening. Her focus was solely on the two central pens, where her teenage daughters were standing. As Trevor had gone to get himself a coffee, he had noticed a sign pointing to the side pens instead of to the tunnel. He was not in the central pens but, like his wife, was watching them intently. That's when he noticed that people were trying to climb over the fence.Vicki (right) and Sarah Hicks, pictured on a family holiday."It was obvious to any of us -- it wasn't a pitch invasion," he says. "Any football fan in the world who was there would have known that people were in trouble."The fences around the pens at Hillsborough trapped the fans at the sides and the front. And because of the surge of additional fans from the opening of the exit gate, they were trapped from the back as well. They couldn't move, they couldn't breathe. They were being crushed.Six minutes into the game, play was stopped. The teams were sent from the pitch. Liverpool fans began helping their injured fellow supporters, using pitchside advertising boards as makeshift stretchers. Jenni made her way from the seats back out to Leppings Lane to wait for her family."You keep this hope that it doesn't happen to you," she says. "It's not going to be my family -- keep it together, it's not going to be your family. It was just chaotic really, and then more and more fans come out. And then finally nobody came."'There were casualties all around us'Back on the terrace, Trevor had been searching desperately for his two girls. When he found them, they were lying almost side by side on the grass of the playing area."There were casualties all over the pitch, all around us," he remembers. "We put Vicki in an ambulance, and we turned to get Sarah, but the ambulance started to move off. And what I've often said was one of the low points was do I go or do I stay?"Trevor made the painful decision to leave 19-year-old Sarah behind. He figured there would be another ambulance right behind to help her. But none came.He rode with 15-year-old Vicki to the Northern General Hospital. Shortly after they arrived, she was pronounced dead.In a time before cellphones and social media, Jenni had no way of knowing where her family was. No one had any information. Families were bounced from hospital to hospital, and then sent to a run-down boy's club to wait. Eventually, Jenni was reunited with Trevor. They still didn't know where Sarah was, or whether she was still alive.Vicki (left) and Sarah Hicks, seen during a visit to Liverpool's Anfield ground.They were taken to Hillsborough's gymnasium, which had become a temporary morgue. At the very least, they were told, they could see Vicki there."Before we could see her, we had to look at this big green board, and it had Polaroid photographs of all the dead on it," Jenni says. "They asked us to identify our daughters, but I said we're only looking for Sarah. So we looked at the board, and I think there were 80 or so photographs at this point. "I didn't see Sarah, and I can remember the sense of relief that she wasn't on this board. So I said to the police officer that was sitting beside the board: 'She's not there,' and I was really pleased because I thought this meant she was still alive somewhere. "And he said: 'Look again, love.' And when I looked again, I saw her. And that's when I realized it was both of them.""You're trying to get your head around it," Trevor says. "You go to a football match on a lovely sunny morning and you come home without your daughters, who are in a body bag back in Sheffield."Sarah, Vicki, and 94 others lost their lives that day in April 1989. It remains Britain's deadliest sporting disaster.The lie of 'the truth'But the nightmare would continue. In the immediate aftermath, the police claimed drunk, ticketless fans had arrived late at the stadium, causing the crush and the deaths.The lie went around the world almost immediately, spread on radio and television broadcasts. A few days later, the headline "The Truth," on the front page of British tabloid newspaper The Sun, made this tragic situation even worse.JUST WATCHEDHillsborough survivor: 'It was like a war scene'ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHHillsborough survivor: 'It was like a war scene' 03:46"People initially were stunned that the truth could be so quickly fabricated," Scraton says. "Within days, they were being held responsible for the deaths of their loved ones or their friends. "So it hit people at their most traumatized, and I think it united the city and the region around a search for what they considered to be the real truth."The lie was obvious to Trevor and Jenni, too. The identification of their two girls turned into an interrogation, including endless questions about what they had had to drink that day."Trevor was talking about this being a cover-up," Jenni says. "He said: 'You can see by the questions we're being asked in the media, what the media is saying, that there's a dirty tricks campaign going on with the South Yorkshire Police. We've got to fight these allegations, we've got to make sure that the real truth is told about what happened.'"The Hillsborough Independent PanelThe fight for the real truth spanned more than two decades. Through inquests, investigations, and denials, the "truth" of Hillsborough remained. Then came a government agreement for all documents related to the tragedy to be released and handed to the Hillsborough Independent Panel, chaired by the Bishop of Liverpool.The panel sifted through more than 450,000 pages. The evidence they found was overwhelming, and shocking. As many as 41 of the 96 victims could have been saved if they had received prompt medical attention.Hundreds of police statements had been altered -- lines removed, words copied, passages changed, to fit the storyline that fans were to blame.The evidence didn't end there. The blood alcohol level of every deceased supporter, including from a child as young as 10, was taken on the night of the disaster. Criminal records were searched for in an attempt to "impugn reputations," the panel found. Hillsborough's safety license was 10 years out of date, and the number of turnstiles at Leppings Lane was never going to be enough to accommodate the number of fans.Duckenfield's admissionThe report, delivered to the families on September 12, 2012, was a crucial turning point. The original inquest verdict from 1990, of accidental death, was thrown out.A new inquest was ordered, and began on March 31, 2014. Trevor and Jenni were there. So were relatives of most of the 96."We think the truth will be out this time," Trevor said that day. "Obviously public opinion is more on our side than it was last time. All we're asking for is the facts, the truth, and only what we should have had 25 years ago."JUST WATCHEDReport: Police blamed for stadium tragedyReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHReport: Police blamed for stadium tragedy 02:51Evidence was heard on the circumstances of each victim's death. Months passed by. And then, a year after the inquest began, Duckenfield was called to testify. After the disaster, he had claimed that the exit gate was forced open by fans. On March 11, 2015, he took the witness stand to answer questions from counsel Christina Lambert.Ms. Lambert: Did you believe that the unauthorised access of fans at 2:48pm was either a cause or part of the cause of the problem?Mr. Duckenfield: Ma'am, the only thing I can think of, it was a chapter in a sequence of events. But being absolutely honest about the situation, I made a dreadful mistake, not realizing the consequences of what I was doing.Ms. Lambert: So that we follow you, which dreadful mistake are you referring to?Mr. Duckenfield: [It] was not telling Mr Kelly [Graham Kelly, the then chief executive of the Football Association] that the gates had been opened by me and that may have contributed to the disaster.Ms. Lambert: Do you now consider that you told Mr Kelly and others something that was not true?Mr. Duckenfield: Yes, ma'am.Ms. Lambert: Do you consider now that you told them a lie?Mr. Duckenfield: Yes, ma'am.His admission was met with gasps from the relatives in the room.'There can be no closure for Hillsborough'April 15 this year saw the last official Hillsborough memorial service to be held at Liverpool's Anfield ground. The families, and the survivors, are ready to remember those lost in private after the public battle they have had to wage for the past 27 years."People talk about the word 'closure,'" Scraton says. "It is an arrogant word imposed by those who have not suffered on those who have. "There can be no closure for Hillsborough. They have lost their loved ones in circumstances that were wholly avoidable. What you can do through delivering justice, and delivering the truth, is to help people cope with their loss better, and help them to live life better."For Trevor and Jenni, life goes on, together, but apart. The strain of the aftermath of the disaster was too much for their 23-year marriage. Just 15 months after the events of Hillsborough, they were divorced. But the constant that remains is the love for their two daughters, Sarah and Vicki."They're still a huge part of my life now," Jenni says. "I get so much love from them. My love has grown for them -- it hasn't diminished. And I know I get that love back."
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Microsoft today released its monthly batch of software security updates for the July month to patch a total of 77 vulnerabilities, 14 are rated Critical, 62 are Important, and 1 is rated Moderate in severity.
The July 2019 security updates include patches for various supported versions of Windows operating systems and other Microsoft products, including Internet Explorer, Edge, Office, Azure DevOps, Open Source Software, .NET Framework, Azure, SQL Server, ASP.NET, Visual Studio, and Exchange Server.
Details of 6 security vulnerabilities, all rated important, were made public before a patch was released, none of which were found being exploited in the wild.
However, two new privilege escalation vulnerabilities, one affects all supported versions of the Windows operating system, and the other affects Windows 7 and Server 2008, have been reported as being actively exploited in the wild.
Both actively exploited vulnerabilities lead to elevation of privilege, one (CVE-2019-1132) of which resides in the Win32k component and could allow an attacker to run arbitrary code in kernel mode.
However, the other actively exploited vulnerability (CVE-2019-0880) resides in the way splwow64 (Thunking Spooler APIs) handles certain calls, allowing an attacker or a malicious program to elevate its privileges on an affected system from low-integrity to medium-integrity.
The publicly known flaws affect Docker runtime, SymCrypt Windows cryptographic library, Remote Desktop Services, Azure Automation, Microsoft SQL server, and Windows AppX Deployment Service (AppXSVC).
Microsoft also released updates to patch 14 critical vulnerabilities, and as expected, all of them lead to remote code execution attacks and affect Microsoft products ranging from Internet Explorer and Edge to Windows Server DHCP, Azure DevOps and Team Foundation Servers.
Some important-rated vulnerabilities also lead to remote code execution attacks, while others allow elevation of privilege, information disclosure, cross-site scripting (XSS), security feature bypass, spoofing, and denial of service attacks.
Users and system administrators are strongly advised to apply the latest Microsoft security patches as soon as possible to keep hackers and cyber criminals away from taking control of their Windows computer systems.
For installing the latest security updates, users can head on to Settings → Update & Security → Windows Update → Check for updates on their Windows computers or can install the updates manually.
For addressing problematic updates on Windows 10 devices, Microsoft also introduced a safety measure in March this year that automatically uninstalls buggy software updates installed on your system if your OS detects a startup failure.
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The massive data breach at Capital One – America's seventh-largest bank, according to revenue – has challenged many common assumptions about cloud computing for the first time.
Ironically, the incident, which exposed some 106 million Capital One customers' accounts, has only reinforced the belief that the cloud remains the safest way to store sensitive data.
"You have to compare [the cloud] not against 'perfect' but against 'on-premises.'" Ed Amoroso, a former chief security officer at AT&T, told Fortune magazine this week.
He wasn't the only voice defending cloud computing in the wake of a hack attack. In an article titled "Don't Doubt the Cloud," Fortune columnist Robert Hackett, wrote: "The cloud is undeniably convenient and, more importantly, better in terms of security than what the majority of companies can achieve alone."
The problem, experts said, was not cloud computing but rather the tendency for companies to become overly-reliant on cloud computing services like Amazon Web Services to oversee all aspects of security, instead of taking full responsibility for their data security.
Security Advantages of Cloud-Based System
After taking the necessary steps to ensure the safety of their data, companies benefit in numerous ways from the collective security of the cloud.
1. Services such as SaaS (Software as a Service) are hosted on cloud servers
With the collective power of the cloud, the changes are extremely high that the servers hosting your data are better protected than your on-site servers would be. In addition, the cloud service provider handles all maintenance, updates, and support. That takes a great deal of pressure off the IT department.
This is both the biggest benefit of cloud computing and possibly the biggest area of risk. While a service such as Amazon Cloud Services has security resources few companies can match, it must be remembered that placing data in on the cloud is to take it out of complete control by your company. The firewalls protecting the data are no longer your own.
But since your company is still working with the data, it must be secured at a high level on your end. That means compliance with SOC 2 and ISO/27001.
2. Greatly Reduce Human Error – the Single Biggest Threat to Data Safety
With fewer people having access to the data, there are fewer opportunities for errors that lead to data breaches. Too often, hackers can get through the most secure firewalls because someone on the other side carelessly clicked through a link that was planted by a hacker, usually in an email.
But since the data is stored on servers in the cloud, not on-premises, those types of hacks will not result in data breaches.
In addition, adding a layer of automation could reduce the amount of human interaction even more. Start-ups such as PapayaGlobal offer automation in global payroll ears renowned for being the target of hackers, whilst other companies have developed solutions involving robotic process automation (RPA)—software bots that are capable of mimicking human actions.
Those bots are already being employed in areas such as book-keeping. The fewer people interacting with sensitive data, the safer the data will be.
3. Data Transfers Only Through Secure channels
Some of the most common data breaches are carried out through the most mundane methods. Hackers create "spoof" versions of popular email programs.
During tax season, when emails between financial departments and accounting firms are most intense, it's easy to fall for the crafty spoofs and wind up sending data directly to a cybercriminal.
Email is widely recognized as one of the worst ways to send private and sensitive data for a variety of reasons. Not surprisingly, the strict standard for data privacy set by the EU's GDPR forbids transferring private information through email.
With cloud computing, data is sent only through secure, encrypted channels. That eliminates the possibility of spoofs and other common ploys by hackers. It also keeps the data out of sight from hackers, significantly reducing the possibility that they would try to hack your data by other means.
4. Separation between work environment and storage environment
Another great advantage of the cloud is the networking segmentation between computing and storage. The obvious benefit of this separation is the reduced risk that all data will be compromised, even if a hacker manages to breach all the sophisticated defenses.
Other forms of segmentation include limiting the number of people who can access certain data. Keeping sensitive information in the hands of only those individuals who need it, and staggering access so that the smallest possible number of people have access to the whole is an excellent way to mitigate potential breaches.
Avoiding the Next Capital One Breach
Few companies were as committed to the benefits of cloud computing as Capital One. While this did not protect the company from suffering one of the largest data breaches in history, it may help the next company avoid the same fate.
It has brought greater awareness to the field of cloud security and data protection and identified areas that were exploitable by crafty hackers.
The breach did not prove that the cloud was less secure than previously believed. It showed that it is never a good idea to outsource data security entirely to a third party.
Companies need to remain on guard at all times, take measures to ensure their own part of the data equation remains up to date with the most advanced technology, and keep a watchful eye on their data even when it is stored in the safety of the cloud.
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It's Patch Tuesday once again…time for another round of security updates for the Windows operating system and other Microsoft products.
This month Windows users and system administrators need to immediately take care of a total of 63 security vulnerabilities, of which 12 are rated critical, 49 important and one moderate and one low in severity.
Two of the vulnerabilities patched by the tech giant this month are listed as publicly known at the time of release, and one flaw is reported as being actively exploited in the wild by multiple cybercriminal groups.
Zero-Day Vulnerability Being Exploited by Cyber Criminals
The zero-day vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2018-8589, which is being exploited in the wild by multiple advanced persistent threat groups was first spotted and reported by security researchers from Kaspersky Labs.
The flaw resides in the Win32k component (win32k.sys), which if exploited successfully, could allow a malicious program to execute arbitrary code in kernel mode and elevate its privileges on an affected Windows 7, Server 2008 or Server 2008 R2 to take control of it.
"The exploit was executed by the first stage of a malware installer in order to gain the necessary privileges for persistence on the victim's system. So far, we have detected a very limited number of attacks using this vulnerability," Kaspersky said.
Two Publicly Disclosed Zero-Day Vulnerabilities
The other two publicly known zero-day vulnerabilities which were not listed as under active attack reside in Windows Advanced Local Procedure Call (ALPC) service and Microsoft's BitLocker Security Feature.
The flaw related to ALPC, tracked as CVE-2018-8584, is a privilege escalation vulnerability that could be exploited by running a specially crafted application to execute arbitrary code in the security context of the local system and take control over an affected system.
Advanced local procedure call (ALPC) facilitates high-speed and secure data transfer between one or more processes in the user mode.
The second publicly disclosed vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2018-8566, exists when Windows improperly suspends BitLocker Device Encryption, which could allow an attacker with physical access to a powered-off system to bypass security and gain access to encrypted data.
BitLocker was in headlines earlier this month for a separate issue that could expose Windows users encrypted data due to its default encryption preference and bad encryption on self-encrypting SSDs.
Microsoft did not fully address this issue; instead, the company simply provided a guide on how to manually change BitLocker default encryption choice.
November 2018 Patch Tuesday: Critical and Important Flaws
Out of 12 critical, eight are memory corruption vulnerabilities in the Chakra scripting engine that resides due to the way the scripting engine handles objects in memory in the Microsoft Edge internet browser.
All the 8 vulnerabilities could be exploited to corrupt memory, allowing an attacker to execute code in the context of the current user. To exploit these bugs, all an attacker needs to do is tricking victims into opening a specially crafted website on Microsoft Edge.
Rest three vulnerabilities are remote code execution bugs in the Windows Deployment Services TFTP server, Microsoft Graphics Components, and the VBScript engine. All these flaws reside due to the way the affected software handles objects in memory.
The last critical vulnerability is also a remote code execution flaw that lies in Microsoft Dynamics 365 (on-premises) version 8. The flaw exists when the server fails to properly sanitize web requests to an affected Dynamics server.
If exploited successfully, the vulnerability could allow an authenticated attacker to run arbitrary code in the context of the SQL service account by sending a specially crafted request to a vulnerable Dynamics server.
Windows Deployment Services TFTP Server Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8476 Critical
Microsoft Graphics Components Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8553 Critical
Chakra Scripting Engine Memory Corruption Vulnerability CVE-2018-8588 Critical
Chakra Scripting Engine Memory Corruption Vulnerability CVE-2018-8541 Critical
Chakra Scripting Engine Memory Corruption Vulnerability CVE-2018-8542 Critical
Chakra Scripting Engine Memory Corruption Vulnerability CVE-2018-8543 Critical
Windows VBScript Engine Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8544 Critical
Chakra Scripting Engine Memory Corruption Vulnerability CVE-2018-8555 Critical
Chakra Scripting Engine Memory Corruption Vulnerability CVE-2018-8556 Critical
Chakra Scripting Engine Memory Corruption Vulnerability CVE-2018-8557 Critical
Chakra Scripting Engine Memory Corruption Vulnerability CVE-2018-8551 Critical
Microsoft Dynamics 365 (on-premises) version 8 Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8609 Critical
Azure App Service Cross-site Scripting Vulnerability CVE-2018-8600 Important
Windows Win32k Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability CVE-2018-8589 Important
BitLocker Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability CVE-2018-8566 Important
Windows ALPC Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability CVE-2018-8584 Important
Team Foundation Server Cross-site Scripting Vulnerability CVE-2018-8602 Important
Microsoft Dynamics 365 (on-premises) version 8 Cross Site Scripting Vulnerability CVE-2018-8605 Important
Microsoft Dynamics 365 (on-premises) version 8 Cross Site Scripting Vulnerability CVE-2018-8606 Important
Microsoft Dynamics 365 (on-premises) version 8 Cross Site Scripting Vulnerability CVE-2018-8607 Important
Microsoft Dynamics 365 (on-premises) version 8 Cross Site Scripting Vulnerability CVE-2018-8608 Important
Microsoft RemoteFX Virtual GPU miniport driver Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability CVE-2018-8471 Important
DirectX Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability CVE-2018-8485 Important
DirectX Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability CVE-2018-8554 Important
DirectX Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability CVE-2018-8561 Important
Win32k Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability CVE-2018-8562 Important
Microsoft SharePoint Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability CVE-2018-8572 Important
Microsoft Exchange Server Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability CVE-2018-8581 Important
Windows COM Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability CVE-2018-8550 Important
Windows VBScript Engine Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8552 Important
Microsoft SharePoint Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability CVE-2018-8568 Important
Windows Elevation Of Privilege Vulnerability CVE-2018-8592 Important
Microsoft Edge Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability CVE-2018-8567 Important
DirectX Information Disclosure Vulnerability CVE-2018-8563 Important
MSRPC Information Disclosure Vulnerability CVE-2018-8407 Important
Windows Audio Service Information Disclosure Vulnerability CVE-2018-8454 Important
Win32k Information Disclosure Vulnerability CVE-2018-8565 Important
Microsoft Outlook Information Disclosure Vulnerability CVE-2018-8558 Important
Windows Kernel Information Disclosure Vulnerability CVE-2018-8408 Important
Microsoft Edge Information Disclosure Vulnerability CVE-2018-8545 Important
Microsoft SharePoint Information Disclosure Vulnerability CVE-2018-8578 Important
Microsoft Outlook Information Disclosure Vulnerability CVE-2018-8579 Important
PowerShell Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8256 Important
Microsoft Outlook Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8522 Important
Microsoft Outlook Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8576 Important
Microsoft Outlook Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8524 Important
Microsoft Word Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8539 Important
Microsoft Word Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8573 Important
Microsoft Excel Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8574 Important
Microsoft Project Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8575 Important
Microsoft Outlook Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8582 Important
Windows Search Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8450 Important
Microsoft Excel Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8577 Important
Internet Explorer Memory Corruption Vulnerability CVE-2018-8570 Important
Microsoft JScript Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability CVE-2018-8417 Important
Windows Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability CVE-2018-8549 Important
Microsoft Edge Spoofing Vulnerability CVE-2018-8564 Important
Active Directory Federation Services XSS Vulnerability CVE-2018-8547 Important
Team Foundation Server Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8529 Important
Yammer Desktop Application Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2018-8569 Important
Microsoft Powershell Tampering Vulnerability CVE-2018-8415 Important
.NET Core Tampering Vulnerability CVE-2018-8416 Moderate
Microsoft Skype for Business Denial of Service Vulnerability CVE-2018-8546 Low
This month's security update also covers 46 important vulnerabilities in Windows, PowerShell, MS Excel, Outlook, SharePoint, VBScript Engine, Edge, Windows Search service, Internet Explorer, Azure App Service, Team Foundation Server, and Microsoft Dynamics 365.
Users and system administrators are strongly advised to apply the above security patches as soon as possible in order to keep hackers and cyber criminals away from taking control of their systems.
For installing security patch updates, head on to Settings → Update & security → Windows Update → Check for updates, or you can install the updates manually.
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Story highlightsAfrica's five longest presidencies are cumulatively 169 years The average age of the 10 oldest presidents is 78.5, compared to 52 in the most developed countriesDavid E Kiwuwa is Associate Professor of International Studies at Princeton University. CNN is showcasing the work of The Conversation, a collaboration between journalists and academics to provide news analysis and commentary. The views expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author. This piece was originally published in October 2015.There is something unmistakably common in Africa: the continent's aging and long-serving presidents.Its five longest presidencies stretch between 29 and 36 years, adding to a cumulative 169 years. Their longevity in office is matched by their old age, ranging from 71 to 91 years, and a combined 390 years.Gabon's Omar Bongo had been president for a whopping 41 years when he died in office at the age of 73 in 2011. Hastings Banda, Malawi's self-proclaimed president for life, was in his late 90s when he was ousted from office in 1994. Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe is 91, making him the oldest leader in the world. The average age of the ten oldest African leaders is 78.5, compared to 52 for the world's ten most-developed economies. Arguably, compared to other continents, Africa has a very small proportion of younger leaders between 35 and 55. Paradoxically, the continent has the youngest population in the world, with a median age of 19.5 years according to the U.N.Old and out of touchRead MoreAfrica has a leadership age gap disconnect between the leaders and the led. To put it into context, 85% percent of Angolans were not born when Dos Santos came into power in 1979. 83% of Zimbabweans were born after Mugabe first came into power as prime minister in 1980, while 79% percent of Ugandans were born after Museveni took over power in 1986.On average, only between 15% to 21% of their citizens were alive when these presidents took the reins.So, with a burgeoning youthful demography at the bottom, the political top is disturbingly a graying lot. The issue here is the age at which African leaders continue to hold the fort and ultimately refuse to unclench their grip on power.Read more: 326 billion reasons Africa is on the moveThis question has been given specific relevance by the poster boy of the aging leadership, the nonagenarian Mugabe. He recently read an old state of the nation address to his parliament.This, after he had an earlier mistakenly denounced his own party, shouting "down with ZANU PF". The increasing gaffes and their frequency tell a progressively sad narrative: the old man is unable to exercise or retain the alertness needed for the job.It shows him to be obviously incapable of providing an unclouded vision that matches the pace, expectations and tongue of time. But most troubling, leaders such as him have failed to deliver on the expectations of their burgeoning youth.Why is Africa so saddled with leaders who ought to be enjoying their retirement in peace and quiet, instead of in the unforgiving political corridors, campaign trails and taxing political brinkmanship that challenge even the youngest leaders? If the average age of the continent is 19.5, why is the average age of leadership 65?Part of the explanation across the board is their mastered use of brute force and violence to cow opponents. Also, the aging leaders' supporters argue that with age and longevity in office comes wisdom, foresight and experience. But this is clearly contradicted by the abysmal performance of their economies and uncertain sociopolitical stability.Yet, such leaders still attract reverence and unbridled loyalty from their supporters. Equally, being seen as "fathers of the nation", who led independence or liberation struggles, makes them irreproachable, irrespective of their shortcomings, extending their tenure.Perhaps a broader explanation that cuts across their respective constituencies lies in the combination of political machinations, shrewd political brinkmanship through patrimonial networks and corrupt practices.Undoubtedly, it is also their longevity in the executive office that has curtailed and stifled the emergence of credible and youthful successors. But this doesn't fully explain why Tunisia, Namibia, Liberia, Ghana and others still return leaders in their twilight years. This begs the question: are African youths still unable to appreciate their ability to dictate the pace and direction of their own destinies or the correlation between their leaders' age and their floundering fortunes?Read more: What is Africa's most competitive country?Clearly the answer is in the affirmative. This paradox is informed by a binary where those at the top are stuck in the anti-colonial/Western mentality. Added to this are nostalgia of liberation struggles and distrust for youth, while those at the bottom are driven by technological innovation, globalization, the pressure of consumerism and the frustration of unfulfilled promise.Much of the progressive world embraces the innovativeness of youth -- its energy, vibrancy, adaptability, willingness to embrace change and enthusiasm to learn. Africa, on the other hand, wobbles behind, unable to keep pace, thanks to its conservative aging leaders.For as long as the leaders and their followers have differing interpretations of what the continent needs today and tomorrow, Africa will for the foreseeable future stay caught in unpredictable generational crosswinds between her past and the future.Follow @CNNAfrica
Republished under a Creative Commons license from The Conversation.
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The risks associated with data breaches continue to grow, impacting a variety of industries, tech firms, and social networking platforms. In the past few months, over 1 Billion credentials were dumped online as a result of mega breaches in popular social networks.
Now, Oracle is the latest in the list.
Oracle has confirmed that its MICROS division – which is one of the world's top three point-of-sale (POS) services the company acquired in 2014 – has suffered a security breach.
Hackers had infected hundreds of computers at Oracle's point-of-sale division, infiltrated the support portal used by customers, and potentially accessed sales registers all over the world.
The software giant came to know about the data breach after its staff discovered malicious code on the MICROS customer support portal and certain legacy MICROS systems. Hackers likely installed malware on the troubleshooting portal in order to capture customers' credentials as they logged in.
These usernames and passwords can then be used to access their accounts and remotely control their MICROS point-of-sales terminals.
In a brief letter sent to MICROS customers, Oracle told businesses to change their MICROS account passwords for the MICROS online support site – particularly passwords that are used by MICROS staff to control on-site payment terminals remotely.
"Oracle Security has detected and addressed malicious code in certain legacy MICROS systems," said the company. "Oracle's Corporate network and other cloud and service offerings were not impacted by this code."
"Payment card data is encrypted both at rest and in transit in the MICROS hosted environment… Consistent with standard security remediation protocols, Oracle [requires] MICROS customers to change the passwords for all MICROS accounts."
Citing unknown sources, security news site KrebsOnSecurity, reported that the attack possibly came from a Russian crime gang, dubbed Carbanak Gang, that has been accused of stealing more than $1 Billion from banks and retailer stores in past hacks.
The scope of the data breach is still unknown, but anonymous sources familiar with the breach have told Krebs that the hack may have affected up to 700 systems.
Since customers payment data is encrypted both at rest and in transit, Oracle said that this information is not at risk.
Oracle acquired MICROS in 2014 in a $5 Billion acquisition deal. Currently, MICROS devices are deployed at over 330,000 point-of-sale terminals (or cash registers) at food and beverage outlets, retail stores, and hotels across 180 countries.
The software giant is still investigating the security breach at its payment terminal division.
Over the past few years, the security breach has hit POS terminals – or "cash registers" – operated by a large number of retailers, food chains, hotels, and other types of merchants. Two of the best-known victims to be hit by POS malware are Target and Home Depot.
POS terminals have emerged as the favorite target for cybercriminal gangs because when it comes to the cheap and easy way to siphon the vast number of payment cards, breaching a single retailer's internal network could allow criminals to collect Millions of valid payment card numbers in a relatively short amount of time.
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Android Security Squad, the China-based group that uncovered a second Android master key vulnerability that might be abused to modify smartphone apps without breaking their digital signatures.
The whole point of digitally signing a document or file is to prove the file hasn't been modified. The process uses a form of public-key cryptography. In Chinese version of hacking attack, malicious code can be added into the file headers, but the method is limited because targeted files need to be smaller than 64K in size.
APK files are packed using a version of the widespread ZIP archiving algorithm. Most ZIP implementations won't permit two same-named files in one archive, but the algorithm itself doesn't forbid that possibility. So basically, two versions of the classes.dex file are placed inside of the package, the original and a hacked alternative.
When checking an app's digital signature, the Android OS looks at the first matching file, but when actually executing and launching the file, it grabs the last one. To Trojanize an app, then, all you need to do is shoehorn your malicious code into it using a name that already exists within the app.
The flaw is very similar to the first master key vulnerability recently announced by researchers from mobile security firm Bluebox Security. According to BlueBox, 99% of Android devices are vulnerable to this attack. Google has already patched the flaw and posted it to the Android Open Source Project (AOSP).
You can use ReKey, a free mobile app that's designed to patch the Android master key vulnerability that's present in an estimated 900 million devices that run Android and that could be exploited by attackers to take full control of a device.
Always get your apps from legitimate sources, always check to make sure the developer name is valid, and configure your phone so it doesn't permit installing apps from unknown sources.
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Story highlightsFrenchman is one of world's best free skiers"One of Those Days" trilogy has amassed more than 28m YouTube viewsThovex is multiple X Games winner and 2010 Freeride World Tour championLa Clusaz native is passionate filmmaker (CNN)Imagine yourself soaring 30ft in the air on a pair of skis. Now picture a helicopter with whop-whopping blades whirring under you. If you can't quite conjure what that might be like, put yourself in the ski boots of one of the world's best free skiers Candide Thovex. He filmed it on a headcam, so you can.Follow @cnnsport
"I don't think I would do it again," the 33-year-old Thovex told CNN. "It was definitely kind of scary. You don't want to finish like a ham."As well as not ending up like a ham, he also jumped over a paraglider and a peloton of cyclists, skied across a lake and water-skied behind the helicopter in his latest YouTube edit.One of those days 3Watch the full clip here --> https://t.co/5b6viCHFCx pic.twitter.com/nMw2yYzjsj— Candide Thovex (@CandideThovex) February 23, 2016
Read MoreThovex is the man behind the internet trilogy "One of Those Days," three high-speed "point-of-view" romps packed with big jumps, flips and spins and laced with an impish sense of humour around his home resort of La Clusaz in France.The original "One of Those Days" came out in 2013, and skiers and action sports junkies were hooked.The editor of Powder magazine, John Clary Davies, wrote at the time: "The best skier on the planet at his home hill. This is the most fun I've ever had skiing and all I did was sit in my office and press play. Movie of the Year. Edit of the Century. Done."Thovex hails from La Clusaz in France and is widely acknowledged one of the world's best freeskiers.The flying Frenchman released "One of Those Days 3" on February 23. Five days later it had achieved more than 4.4 million views on the social media channel.A passionate filmmaker, Thovex says he wanted to showcase a different type of skiing to the powder, snowparks and big-mountain skiing seen in most ski movies.JUST WATCHEDWarning: This might make you ski-sickReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHWarning: This might make you ski-sick 02:13"I knew it was going to work because people aren't used to seeing that kind of skiing, but I was definitely surprised," he says."I wanted to show different stuff, just skiing slopes in resorts and doing the type of skiing I've done since I was a kid. I think that's why people enjoy it."Here's a blank cheque - where would you go? 11 of the world's best heli-ski spots.As outrageous as the heli stunt was, Thovex says he was more concerned with what came straight after it."It was something we'd really planned. I'd been doing the jump before the heli came -- it was a massive jump and I knew exactly the speed I needed," he said."At the same time I was focused on the second jump right after it. It was almost more scary. It was big and if I didn't have enough speed I would have landed on the flat. I broke my back a few years ago and I didn't want to be shocked again."'In the air it's just the greatest feeling, you know?' Not really, no.Thovex has made a career of huge jumps on skis after making a name for himself with the first clearance of what became known as "Chad's Gap," a 120ft jump over a 40ft deep gully in the Alta backcountry in 1999.He went on to become a triple Winter X Games gold medalist in big air, superpipe and slopestyle, but after breaking his back in 2007 -- he fractured a vertebrae with a bad landing off a jump called "Big Bertha" -- it was initially feared he might never ski again.He did return, however, and clinched a remarkable victory in the 2010 Freeride World Tour alongside a first foray into filmmaking.'Greatest feeling'Given he has logged more air miles on his skis than a lot of people do in airplanes, Thovex says big jumps are not the thing that fazes him most.Butter pic.twitter.com/i5sr3fE9II— Candide Thovex (@CandideThovex) February 29, 2016
"When you have some jumps that go really high it's crazy," he says. "You just want to make sure you get the right speed, but in the air it's just the greatest feeling, you know?"But I've been doing that since I was a kid so it's usual."I've been more scared doing things like freeriding big mountains where there is always the risk of avalanches, and often you are doing stuff nobody has skied before. When you are the first you are in the unknown and there is definitely a lot of pressure. "But I think it's good to have some pressure. When you are too confident, that's when you hurt yourself. You need to be a bit on the defense."Real?The first film ends with Thovex pulling a back flip over a police car before running up the road in his ski boots with the sirens wailing behind him. "One of Those Days 2," which came out last year, upped the ante.It culminates in Thovex skiing off the terrace of a mountain restaurant at lunch time, hopping the fence at the lift station and skiing straight into the open gondola as people at the front of the line bang on the doors.One of the main themes in the comments section under the videos on YouTube is whether Thovex's stunts are real. He insists they are, but admits "painting" some shots -- for instance with a flock of birds -- to enhance the look.Angel Collinson: Skier survives unscathed after dramatic 1,000ft fallFor the most recent edit, Thovex, "pushed a bit more." Where the first one took "a few days" to film, "One Of Those Days 3" took about three weeks, plus about another month to edit."We scripted everything we wanted to have in it," says Thovex, who does all his own editing. "People are not used to seeing skiing on water so I can understand why they think it is fake. That's why we started using outside views, so people can see that's its real. "The title is 'One Of Those Days' but it's kind of a concept."Some scenes took longer to get right than others -- the water-skiing-behind-a-helicopter finale proved particularly troublesome."The water was super cold and it took me a bit of time to be able to catch the rope. I was freezing," said Thovex, who wore a wetsuit and life-jacket under his ski suit. Shaun White: Dad tears really get you "The heli pilot, when he is on top of the water, doesn't know how high he is so it's really difficult for him to get the right spot. And when I was catching the rope he had to move forward at the right time so it was definitely the most difficult thing to shoot."Thovex says the trilogy is complete and is planning a new filming project away from the point-of-view angle. But amid the frenzied life of a traveling pro skier, he will always find time to do what he really loves."I just love to be on my skis, skiing with my friends, just going out into the mountains and being in nature and skiing some powder, that's the best thing," he says.What do you make of Candide Thovex's exploits? Tell us on CNN Sport's Facebook pageThovex made a first descent of Eagle Peak in Canada for his film "Few Words".
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A critical vulnerability has been discovered in the official Apple's App Store and iTunes Store, affecting millions of Apple users.
Vulnerability-Lab Founder and security researcher Benjamin Kunz Mejri discovered an Application-Side input validation web vulnerability that actually resides in the Apple App Store invoice module and is remotely exploitable by both sender as well as the receiver.
The vulnerability, estimated as high in severity, has been reported to Apple Security team on June 9, 2015 and the company patched the issue within a month.
How the vulnerability works?
By exploiting the flaw, a remote hacker can manipulate the name value (device cell name) by replacing it with a malicious script code.
Now, if the attacker buys any product in the App Store or iTunes Store, the internal app store service takes the device value (which is actually the malicious code) and generates the invoice which is then sends to the seller account.
This results in an Application-side script code execution in the invoice of Apple.
In addition, remote hackers can manipulate the vulnerability through persistent manipulated context to other Apple store user accounts.
"The invoice is present to both parties (buyer & seller) which demonstrates a significant risk to buyers, sellers or apple website managers/developers," says the researcher. "The issue impact also the risk that a buyer can be the seller by usage of the same name to compromise the store online service integrity."
Successful exploitation of the bug could allow an attacker to perform a number of sensitive tasks, including
Session hijacking
Persistent redirect to external sources
Persistent phishing attacks
Persistent manipulation of affected service module context
Proof-of-Concept
Exploitation of the vulnerability requires a low privileged Apple web-application user (App Store/iCloud) account and low or medium user interaction.
The researcher published step by step method to exploit the flaw:
Inject the malicious script code to your device cell name
Buy an article by using Apple iTunes or App Store
Select any App or Movie that you would like to Buy and Download
After the download is completed, an Invoice receives to your inbox
An application-side injected script code execution occurs in the arrived emails context next to the device-cell and type cell value parameters
Successful reproduce of the remote vulnerability
You can also watch the video that shows the attack in work.
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It is now possible to hack the human brain ? YES ! This was explained researchers at the Usenix Conference on Security, held from 8 to 10 August in Washington State. Using a commercial off-the-shelf brain-computer interface, the researchers have shown that it's possible to hack your brain, forcing you to reveal information that you'd rather keep secret.
In a study of 28 subjects wearing brain-machine interface devices built by companies like Neurosky and Emotiv and marketed to consumers for gaming and attention exercises, the researchers found they were able to extract hints directly from the electrical signals of the test subjects' brains that partially revealed private information like the location of their homes, faces they recognized and even their credit card PINs.
Brain-computer interface or BCIs are generally used in a medical setting with very expensive equipment, but in the last few years cheaper, commercial offerings have emerged. For $200-300, you can buy an Emotive or Neurosky BCI, go through a short training process, and begin mind controlling your computer.
"These devices have access to your raw EEG [electroencephalography, or electrical brain signal] data, and that contains certain neurological phenomena triggered by subconscious activities," says Ivan Martinovic, a member of the faculty in the department of computer science at Oxford.
"So the central question we were asking with this is work was, is this is a privacy threat?" To extract this information, the researchers rely on what's known as the P300 response a very specific brainwave pattern that occurs when you recognize something that is meaningful, or when you recognize something that fits your current task. The researchers basically designed a program that flashes up pictures of maps, banks, and card PINs, and makes a note every time your brain experiences a P300.
The researchers found they could guess which of those random numbers was the first digit in the PIN with about 30% accuracy on the first try–far from a home run, but a significantly higher success rate than a random guess.
This brain hack can only improve in efficacy as BCIs become cheaper, more accurate, and thus more extensively used. "But social engineering could make that possible. Attackers are creative." What do you thing about a Brain Malware ?
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Story highlightsIndia hosts a Formula One race for the first time this weekend, near DelhiOrganizers hoping to overcome the legacy of the 2010 Commonwealth GamesVenue was built on land bought from farmers, who have been unhappy with dealTicket prices for Sunday's race have been slashed to attract more local supportersIndia is in the fast lane. The trillion-plus-dollar economy, Asia's largest after Japan and China, is set to host the world's fastest sport this weekend.The subcontinent's inaugural Grand Prix comes barely a year after India earned international scorn for all the chaos and corruption allegations that plagued the 2010 Commonwealth Games staged in New Delhi.That event was marred by a host of problems including athletes' alarm over the shoddy construction and condition of their quarters, while a pedestrian bridge leading to the main Jawarhalal Nehru Stadium collapsed two days before the competitors were due to arrive.In April this year, India's federal police arrested the Games' chief organizer, Suresh Kalmadi, for suspected corruption.Kalmadi, who was involved in bringing F1 to India through his former role at the Indian Olympic Association, was jailed for allegedly buying a time, scoring and result system from a Swiss company at inflated costs. He was also suspended by the political party with which he was an MP.But promoters of India's first F1 race hope their $400 million project will repair the damage done to the country's reputation. "The world's perception of India is going to change after the Grand Prix and people will forget what happened because of the Commonwealth Games," said Jaiprakash Gaur, founding chairman of Jaypee Group that built the Buddh International Circuit.JUST WATCHEDFormula One racing comes to IndiaReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHFormula One racing comes to India 02:06A few weeks ago, a fleet of Mercedes-Benz cars whizzed media crews around the 5.125-kilometer circuit, giving them a glimpse of what Indian businesses lauded as a stirring example of their competence."Corporate India is completely capable, and they are capable of executing projects of world class, which has been demonstrated by the F1 track, which looks certainly as one of the best in the world," said Ajay Sharma, a senior director with the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India."This is great news for the country because the investors are also now excited that this is the country where, you know, all the happening things are happening," he told CNN.Sharma's lobby group predicts that investments in the motorsport infrastructure could potentially fuel overall economic prosperity by some $10 billion over the next decade. It says the arrival of global sporting bodies -- themselves seeking a foothold in emerging markets -- is an ideal opportunity for international brand-building by Indian businesses. However, not everyone is as excited about the event when so many Indians live in abject poverty."The contrast between the rich and the poor is very large in India," said Arun Kumar, a professor at the Center of Economic Studies and Planning at New Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University."Here, about 40% of our people live in extreme poverty without even basic facilities. In a sense, it sounds very cruel that the nation is spending a large amount of its wealth on such sports."The track complex, complete with stands and team enclosures painted in the colors of India's flag, was built by private developers on land acquired from farmers, who later alleged they were short-changed for their properties.Last week, the country's Supreme Court froze 25% of ticket revenue after a litigant challenged government tax waivers on the race. Critics are questioning the taste of putting up such high-octane shows in a country where a quarter of its billion-plus people still lives on less than a dollar a day. With organizers struggling to sell out the event, ticket prices for Sunday's race have already been slashed. The most expensive has dropped from $715 to about $300, and the cheapest from about $120 to $60. But even the lowest amount is equivalent to the monthly wages of tens of thousands of Indians."What do we consider to be a nation? A nation means having a concern for all citizens. In this day and age when advertising has become so large, expectations have risen and these lavish displays only increase discontent," Kumar said. "And the ruling elite in the country is backing such displays, which shows it's becoming more callous."In cricket-crazy India, some also accept that motorsport, though exciting, is too new to them."I don't think we Indians are much into Formula racing," admits Jai Sethi, a New Delhi resident. "And I guess how the race is being done, who wins it, what the rules are and who the teams are have to be known to the Indian public. I'm talking of the masses, not just the elite."
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Story highlightsCatalan president expected to address parliament TuesdaySupporters want him to declare independence but unclear if he will (CNN)Pro-independence Catalans gathered on the streets of Barcelona Tuesday ahead of a hotly anticipated speech by the region's leader on the status of the restive province.Carles Puigdemont, the President of Catalonia, was due to address a specially convened session of the region's parliament. But the session, due to begin at 12 p.m. ET (6p.m. local time) was delayed amid reports of international mediation to end the crisis.Puigdemont requested the delay "given the contacts for an international mediation," his spokesman Joan Maria Pique told CNN. He did not immediately provide additional details on the mediation.The anti-independence Ciutadans party and the Catalan branch of Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's Popular Party (PPC) had also requested a suspension of Tuesday' rsession, according to a document seen by CNN.Puigdemont was under intense pressure to back down from plans to declare independence from Spain following a disputed referendum.Read MoreThe Parc de la Ciutadella, which houses the Catalan parliament building, was sealed off to the public for safety reasons, with the Catalan police Mossos guarding the entrances and exits. National police and the Guardia Civil kept a low profile, according to CNN reporters. Officers of Catalonia's regional police force stand guard outside the Parliament of Catalonia.European Council President Donald Tusk urged Puigdemont to back down. "The force of arguments is always better than the argument of force," he said in Brussels."Today I ask you to respect in your attentions the constitutional order and not announce a decision that would make such a dialogue impossible," he said. "Diversity should not lead to conflict whose consequences would be bad for Catalonia, Spain and the whole of Europe."Mayor of Barcelona Ada Colau, an influential figure who has been critical of both sides, called for de-escalation. She urged Puigdemont not to make a unilateral declaration of independence, and also called on the government of Prime Minister Rajoy not to impose direct rule from Madrid. "Now is the time for dialogue," she said in address from in Barcelona.Barcelona mayor Ada Colau delivers a speech at the City Council in Barcelona.
Colau said Spain was experiencing its "worst institutional crisis since democracy began" and said Spain's political elected representatives should "find a solution that is inclusive and up to standards we have been living."Neighboring France said Monday it would not recognize an independent Catalonia -- and independence would result in automatic expulsion from the European Union. Political uncertaintyHowever thousands of supporters of independence are expected to show up at the parliament in Barcelona to show support for the plan, and to call on Puigdemont to honor his commitments to the separatist movement. The political uncertainty began with a divisive and controversial referendum on October 1 that found a majority of Catalan voters in favor of independence for the wealthy, northeastern region of Spain. Madrid declared the referendum illegal and Spanish police tried to shut the vote down by firing rubber bullets and pulling voters from polling booths in scenes that shocked many across Europe. JUST WATCHEDCatalonia: We want to talk, 'nobody' listeningReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHCatalonia: We want to talk, 'nobody' listening 08:36Catalonia's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Raul Romeva Rueda, told CNN's Nima Elbagir that the Catalan side has long wanted to negotiate a fair bargain with the Spanish state. "What we have always demanded is a political dialogue. The opportunity to (practice) democracy, to allow everybody to express themselves ... We want to talk, we need to negotiate. The problem is nobody's listening from the Spanish state side." He said that the Catalan government has invited international mediation and called for dialogue. "We say, 'we are ready, we want to go to the negotiating table. We are ready to start talks' ... If (the central government has) an offer to make we are very much keen to listen to them." PM: 'Spain will not be divided' Prime Minister Rajoy is determined to prevent a breakaway by the northeastern province in the wake of the October 1 vote. "Spain will not be divided, and the national unity will be preserved. To this end we will employ all the means we have within the law. It is up to the government to make decisions, and to do so at the right moment," Rajoy said in an interview with German newspaper Die Welt on Monday.Catalan authorities said 90% of voters chose independence from Madrid, but the result was not as decisive as it appeared -- turnout was only 43%.JUST WATCHEDCatalan leaders threaten independenceReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHCatalan leaders threaten independence 01:56What's at stake?The stakes are high for both Spain and Europe if Catalonia chooses to break away.Catalonia accounts for nearly a fifth of Spain's economy, and leads all regions in producing 25% of the country's exports, CNNMoney reports. It contributes much more in taxes (21% of the country's total) than it gets back from the central government.The prospect of an independent Catalonia has already prompted two major banks and some other businesses to move their registered headquarters to other parts of Spain.There is more at stake for Madrid than losing wealth. The country has 17 regions with varying degrees of autonomy, and losing one may inspire others to begin, or revive, separatist movements.But there are many other unanswered questions, including continued membership in the European Union.If forced to apply independently for EU membership, Catalonia would have to convince all of the bloc's current members, including Spain, to agree.And if Catalonia became an independent state, it would not automatically be a World Trade Organization member, so would likely face stiff trade barriers that would hurt its economy.JUST WATCHEDHow Catalonia's independence crisis unfoldedReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHHow Catalonia's independence crisis unfolded 02:24Speaking on French TV Monday, Nathalie Loiseau, France's minister of European affairs, said the French government would not recognize an independent Catalonia."If independence were to be recognized -- which is not something that's being discussed -- the most immediate consequence would be that (Catalonia) automatically left the European Union," said Loiseau.Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría said in an interview on Spanish radio that the government would invoke powers to take control of the regional government if Catalonia went ahead and declared independence.Journalist Elena Gyldenkerne and CNN's Vasco Cotovio contributed to this report from Barcelona.
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The maintainers of OpenSSL have released a fix for two high-severity security flaws in its software that could be exploited to carry out denial-of-service (DoS) attacks and bypass certificate verification.
Tracked as CVE-2021-3449 and CVE-2021-3450, both the vulnerabilities have been resolved in an update (version OpenSSL 1.1.1k) released on Thursday. While CVE-2021-3449 affects all OpenSSL 1.1.1 versions, CVE-2021-3450 impacts OpenSSL versions 1.1.1h and newer.
OpenSSL is a software library consisting of cryptographic functions that implement the Transport Layer Security protocol with the goal of securing communications sent over a computer network.
According to an advisory published by OpenSSL, CVE-2021-3449 concerns a potential DoS vulnerability arising due to NULL pointer dereferencing that can cause an OpenSSL TLS server to crash if in the course of renegotiation the client transmits a malicious "ClientHello" message during the handshake between the server and a user. The issue was introduced as part of changes dating back to January 2018.
"If a TLSv1.2 renegotiation ClientHello omits the signature_algorithms extension (where it was present in the initial ClientHello), but includes a signature_algorithms_cert extension then a NULL pointer dereference will result, leading to a crash and a denial of service attack," the advisory said.
Nokia, which has been credited with reporting the flaw on March 17, fixed the DoS bug with a one-line code change.
CVE-2021-3450, on the other hand, relates to an X509_V_FLAG_X509_STRICT flag that enables additional security checks of certificates present in a certificate chain. While this flag is not set by default, an error in the implementation meant that OpenSSL failed to check that "non-CA certificates must not be able to issue other certificates," resulting in a certificate bypass.
As a result, the flaw prevented apps from rejecting TLS certificates that aren't digitally signed by a browser-trusted certificate authority (CA).
"In order to be affected, an application must explicitly set the X509_V_FLAG_X509_STRICT verification flag and either not set a purpose for the certificate verification or, in the case of TLS client or server applications, override the default purpose," OpenSSL said.
Benjamin Kaduk from Akamai is said to have reported the issue to the project maintainers on March 18. The vulnerability was discovered by Xiang Ding and others at Akamai, with a fix put in place by former Red Hat principal software engineer and OpenSSL developer Tomáš Mráz.
Although neither of the issues affect OpenSSL 1.0.2, it's also worth noting that the version has been out of support since January 1, 2020, and is no longer receiving updates. Applications that rely on a vulnerable version of OpenSSL are advised to apply the patches to mitigate the risk associated with the flaws.
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(CNN)In 1987, the New York Giants won the Super Bowl and their quarterback Phil Simms uttered five immortal words: "I'm going to Disney World!" Thus began a tradition, which still continues to this day: The Super Bowl MVP has always repeated the line and is subsequently feted with a parade at a Disney park of their choice. For the next two-and-a-half months, the top basketball players will all be residing at Disney World in Orlando, Florida, and they haven't had to win anything to get there.But it's not necessarily the treat you might think; in fact some -- like the Lakers' LeBron James and the Trail Blazers' Damian Lillard -- have compared it to a prison sentence, both using slang on social media, saying they were off 'to do a bid.'" Welcome to Disney World! Or, between now and the middle of October, "Make yourself comfortable in the NBA 'bubble!'" Read MoreBeing referred to as a stretch in the joint is probably not the kind of gratitude the NBA was expecting when they wrestled with the biggest logistical challenge ever faced in the 74-year history of the league: how to resume and finish up a season amidst a global pandemic in a country which has struggled in the fight against Covid-19.Certainly Philadelphia 76ers coach Brett Brown struck a more positive note."I think what the NBA has done ... in the environment we are all in is spectacularly brilliant," Brown told reporters. "I think it's elite -- I have zero complaints about anything that might prohibit us from doing our job."And according to UFC boss Dana White, the 'bubble' approach is currently the only way forward for US sports."This isn't going to work outside of a bubble," White told CNN Sport earlier this week after the UFC staged a series of bouts on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi."You've got to have the bubble, you have to put people in lockdown, people can't be sneaking out, people can't go home. You know, in Abu Dhabi, the people [who worked with UFC] ... haven't seen their families in two months."So far the NBA's approach looks to be working. On Wednesday, the National Basketball Association (NBA) and players' union announced that none of the 344 players tested since July 20 had tested positive for the coronavirus.A general overall exterior view of the Disney's Coronado Springs Resort as part of the NBA restart 2020 on July 1, 2020 in Orlando, Florida.READ: NBA star says coronavirus 'is being used for population control ... overblown''Once in a lifetime opportunity'The NBA's inner sanctum comprises 22 teams and over 350 players, staying in three hotels which are all just a short distance from their practice facilities and game-day venues. Nobody will be getting out early for good behavior; in fact, the better you play, the longer you stay. Whilst there have been some complaints about the range of food options, the NBA's Disney bubble is obviously not a prison.The Pacers power forward Ty Leaf said, "Given all the circumstances, they've done a really good job. I mean, it's not easy throwing together events at this magnitude."The Mavericks' Josh Reaves described it as "a once in a lifetime opportunity, the hotels are great, the facilities are great," while the Spurs Jakob Pöltl said he was "positively surprised," adding the caveat, "We'll see how long it takes until we get on each other's nerves." Technically, it is not a 'bubble' either; the NBA commissioner Adam Silver has resisted describing it as such, because it isn't 'hermetically sealed.' Tyus Jones #21 of the Memphis Grizzlies arrives during practice as part of the NBA restart 2020 on July 17, 2020 in Orlando, Florida.As Sacramento Kings center Richaun Holmes discovered, leaving the bubble is easy; getting back in is not so much.Holmes strayed over the perimeter line to pick up a food delivery, landing him in quarantine for a 10-day period. That's in addition to the initial two days that every player spent in solitary confinement when they first arrived in early July. The Pelicans' top draft pick Zion Williamson is one of several players who've already left the bubble for family matters, and all who do leave know that they'll be quarantined again prior to re-entry. The guidelines are intensely detailed; it took the NBA no less than 113 pages to lay down the law in a handbook which was distributed to every team.Seemingly everything has been considered; for example -- a game of cards with teammates is OK, but only while wearing a facemask and on the understanding that the deck is disposed of at the end.You can play golf, but you can't have a caddie. No showering at the practice and game facilities, only back at your team hotel, where there will be no sharing of towels or deodorant and in an Orwellian twist, there is an anonymous tip-line to report any violations. READ: Michael Jordan game-worn sneakers tipped to fetch over $500,000 at auctionGiannis Antetokounmpo #34 of the Milwaukee Bucks dribbles the ball during practice as part of the NBA restart 2020 on July 27, 2020 in Orlando, Florida.Specially designed barbershopBarely a handful of journalists are allowed on site and they've had to sign what the New York Times' Marc Stein described as 'unprecedented waivers,' so much of what the outside world is learning of the bubble experience is coming from the players via remote press conferences or the clips they are posting on social media.The specially designed barbershop seems to be a big hit with the players -- "Everybody in the NBA was excited for the barbershop," said the reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.Meanwhile the unofficial beer chugging competition is proving popular with the fans; Pelicans' guard JJ Redick apparently started it with a Bud Light in an ice bath, and the ever-competitive Heat center Meyers Leonard met Redick's challenge by polishing off a Coors Light in little more than three gulps. The 76ers' Glenn Robinson III has thanked his mom for sending a care package, the Wizards Isaac Bonga says he's thinking of ordering a keyboard so he can work on his chords, but the one thing that they'll all have to forgo for now is companionship -- no guests are allowed until after the first round of the playoffs at the end of August.Charismatic analyst Stephen A. Smith thinks that that could be too long for some of these red-blooded males."The guys that are married without their wives, the guys that ain't married without their woman. You really, really think they're honoring a bubble for three months?" Smith told ESPN.Joakim Noah #55 and Lou Williams #23 of the LA Clippers shake hands during practice as part of the NBA restart 2020 on July 21, 2020 in Orlando, Florida. Smith may feel partially vindicated after the Clippers' guard Lou Williams was spotted at an Atlanta strip club during an excused absence so that he could attend a funeral.Williams was welcomed back to Orlando with a 10-day quarantine period and, as a result, he will miss the first two games. "For the first time in league history, a player is guaranteed to miss an official NBA game for quarantine," is the way long-time NBA writer Shaun Powell put it.Williams admitted to NBA security that he went to Magic City, a local strip club, while on excused leave. The league was initially suspicious when Jack Harlow, a rapper, posted a picture of him and Williams — wearing an NBA-issued facemask — at the club on social media Thursday before deleting it.Williams said on social media it was the food at Magic City rather than the adult entertainment that had drawn him to the club."Ask any of my teammates what's my favorite restaurant in Atlanta is. Ain't nobody partying. Chill out lol. #Maskon #inandout," Williams tweeted.Clippers coach Doc Rivers told the NBA website: "You know, obviously those (pictures) got out, and that's something that we obviously didn't enjoy seeing or like."The NBA restarts on Thursday at the Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Florida with a TNT doubleheader: Utah Jazz vs. New Orleans Pelicans and Los Angeles Clippers vs. Los Angeles Lakers. LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers stands on the court injured during a time out in their game against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center on February 27, 2020 in San Francisco, California.READ: The billion-dollar move that Michael Jordan almost missed'We need sports'Speaking to CNN, the mental performance consultant Dr. Tiff Jones accepts that separation from families will inevitably be hard, especially since players have transitioned from a long period of lockdown during which they saw more of their partners and kids than ever before, to a period of intense isolation."I think it is going to be hard unless they almost compare it to being in the military," she said, "You're serving your country. We need sports, because of what it will do psychologically for the fans." Dr. Jones points out that there is no research to prove that a period of abstinence has either a positive or detrimental effect on athletic performance, but she says that the players will likely be better rested.What will be fascinating, she says, is a study of how they perform without the other physical connection that they are so accustomed to -- the fans."How many of them are truly impacted without the energy? No matter what's going on in your environment, you've got to find a way to fight."She says that James might struggle without fans, "because he's said it about 8,000 times. Other guys, like Kawhi Leonard, haven't said a word about the fans, because he'll probably play the same way whether people are watching him or not." A general overall interior view of the court as part of the NBA restart 2020 on July 21, 2020 at The Arena at ESPN Wide World of Sports in Orlando, Florida. Every Disney guest is given a 'magic' wristband and it's no different in the NBA bubble. Although on this occasion, the bands are less about accessing your fast pass to the Star Wars rides and more for managing the movement of the players and the safety of the community.In his blog about the bubble, the Boston Celtics' Gordon Hayward wrote:"The magic band is your room key. But you also have to get it scanned before you leave and go to practice and when you come back."Hayward says it's the same procedure if you're pursuing a leisure activity -- like golf -- and every day there is a personal health questionnaire that must be completed. Inevitably life in the bubble is a compromise. The 22 teams currently in residence have to share the seven practice facilities between them, which are deep cleaned after every use.An NBA sign is posted on a basketball arena at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex Wednesday, July 29, 2020, in Orlando.READ: Unbelieva-Bull: 'The Last Dance' brings the Jordan era to lifeThat means there can be long days spent waiting to practice in the evening, and around every corner lurks a potentially awkward encounter with your rivals.Hayward writes: "You run into people from the different teams every day, it's almost like passing period in high school. Once we start playing games and competing against each other, that might get a little weird." As James pointed out after a recent Lakers practice session, "Nothing is normal in 2020. You make the adjustments and you figure it out along the way."Life is indeed what you make it -- just ask the Trail Blazers' center Hassan Whiteside, who joyfully shot a video clip showing him and some of his teammates.Grinning from ear-to-ear, he said: "Your chance of being seven feet [tall] is one in two million." He then panned the camera to show some very large basketball players wedged awkwardly into small and brightly colored paddling pools."To see three seven-footers in baby cold tubs! Disney is a magical place! Magic really do happen! This is better than beauty and the beast!" It remains to be seen whether the NBA's finest athletes do come to regard this experience as akin to a prison sentence, but there's at least one thing that will make it feel very different: If they can keep their noses clean, they won't just be leaving with their personal possessions; they might be walking out through the gates with a trophy as well.
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Story highlights The Kremlin calls the sanctions "unfounded and illegal"The situation in Ukraine reflects a broader tug of war between East and WestThe sanctions were imposed a year agoLondon (CNN)European Union foreign ministers meeting Monday in Luxembourg extended sanctions against Russia imposed because of the country's actions in Crimea and eastern Ukraine, an EU spokeswoman has told CNN.The sanctions were imposed a year ago to punish Russia for its annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea and its military support for separatists in the eastern regions of Ukraine, which border Russia.The sanctions consist of asset freezes on some Russian companies and people as well as travel bans against certain officials. A Kremlin spokesman condemned the extension of the sanctions."Russia, naturally, considers these sanctions to be unfounded and illegal, and we have never been the instigators of sanction measures," the spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told journalists.Read MorePeskov said Russia would respond by extending measures against the European Union, which include restrictions on the import to Russia of foodstuffs from the EU.The Kremlin spokesman said the restrictive measures undermine the interest of EU taxpayers.Upheaval started with rejection of EU agreementThe sanctions, and the events that preceded their imposition, reflect the tug of war between East and West over the future of Ukraine -- and the divisions within the country as well, between ethnic Russians and Ukrainian speakers who want closer ties with the European Union. The turmoil began in earnest when President Viktor Yanukovych, a Russian speaker, decided not to sign an agreement for closer ties with the EU, as he had planned. Instead, he opted for closer ties with Russia.His about-face led to mass protests, and he was driven from office in February 2014.But his ouster provoked resentment and secessionist sentiment in Crimea and eastern Ukraine, leading to Crimea's annexation by Russia and bloodshed in the east -- where secessionists were supported, according to Western officials, by the Russian military.The conflict has not yet been resolved.The pull between East and West, and between ethnic Russians and longer-term natives, is evident in many former Soviet republics, in an arc stretching from Moldova in the south to Latvia in the north.Follow @faithcnn
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Cross Application Scripting vulnerability in Android browser
Recently IBM researchers detected a security vulnerability in Android's Browser which can be exploited by a non-privileged application in order to inject JavaScript code into the context of any domain.This vulnerability has the same implications as global XSS, albeit from an installed application rather than another website.
Android 2.3.5 and 3.2 have been released, which incorporate a fix for this bug. Patches are available for Android 2.2.* and will be released at a later date. The complete advisory can be found here. The browser holds sensitive information such as cookies, cache and history, and injected JavaScript could make it possible to extract that information, indirectly breaking the Android sandbox architecture. The attack exploits flaws in how the browser reacts to calls to view web pages from other applications.
IBM demonstrates the proof of concept for Android Cross Application scripting
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Story highlightsItalian female football team returned to the pitch after mafia-style intimidation tried to shut down the club (CNN)The small town of Locri, in the southern Calabria region of Italy, gets little sporting attention. On Sunday though it took center stage as its female 5-a-side football team, Sporting Locri, returned to the pitch, defying Mafia-style threats aimed at shutting down the club.In December, the club's president Ferdinando Armeni announced in a Facebook post that the team, one of the country's best, would leave Italy's top league Serie A, following intimidating messages that he and the vice president said they had received."It's time to close Sporting Locri," read the first threat -- the milder of two he received. The club initially ignored the threats, continuing to play until the end of December, when Armeni said he found his car tires slashed. And in the car he found a threat against his 3-year-old daughter."When I got that message, I lost my peace of mind," Armeni told CNN. "I wasn't in the mood to continue working on the project I had started five years ago and that, at the end of the day, was a hobby, a passion." Read MoreSunday's match was broadcast on national television. The Italian FA's president, Carlo Tavecchio, vowed to help the team continue to playThe club had never received such intimidation, said Armeni, adding that he is now under the protective surveillance of the Italian police.Once social media and news outlets spread the news, messages of indignation and solidarity poured in. The national female team's captain, Patrizia Panico, even proposed a friendly match later in the season between Sporting Locri and the "azzurre," as the national team is called. A similar offer came from the female team of Italian lawmakers. Centro Sportivo Italiano, the Italian Sports Centre, organized a sports event on January 6, a public holiday. More than 500 people gathered in Locri under the slogan and hashtag #IoVadoAGiocareALocri (I go to play in Locri). Following the uproar, the club, currently fifth in the championship, said it would return to the pitch on Sunday. The investigationA criminal investigation was launched to identify the author of the threats. Although intimidation is often used by Italian Mafia clans, it is unclear whether or not 'Ndrangheta -- the name of the criminal network in the Calabria region -- is behind the messages. Authorities think it unlikely."I hope, and think, that there isn't 'Ndrangheta behind the intimidation," said Arturo Bova, president of the region's anti-Mafia commission. "'Ndrangheta doesn't send you letters," he said. "It acts right away. Whether or not the Mafia is behind the intimidation, we are close to that community, whose image had been devastated by 'Ndrangheta."Sunday's match was broadcast on national television, and the Italian FA's president, Carlo Tavecchio, attended along with politicians from different parties. After the match he vowed to help the team continue to play. "Sporting Locri will have a future," he declared.During the game, the hashtag #iogioco (I play) was a trending topic in Italy. It was an intense game, that Sporting Locri lost 3-2 to Lazio C5, currently second in the championship. Yet, as a final standing ovation from the supporters of both teams showed, by taking the field Sporting Locri had already won its most important game."We felt that the authorities, our fans and the city were supporting us," said goalkeeper Alessia Modestia. "What happened put the team under pressure: At first we were a bit scared, but then we moved on. We are ready to do our best every Sunday."
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Apple has discontinued its own Java plugin, issuing an 'update' that removes it from MacOS and encourages users to instead download Oracle's version of the software. Its another step by Apple towards making OS X safer on the web.
Mac users may have noticed that Java-based websites are displaying a "Missing Plug-in" notification. The Apple Support page states that this update is for OS X 10.7 and later. Apart from stripping browsers of the Java plug-in, it also removes the Java Preferences application, since it is no longer required for applet setting configuration. Just to be clear, the update does not remove Java from your system if its installed, just the Java plugin from your web browsers.
In August, Java was blasted as an unsafe plug-in that should only be used when absolutely necessary after a zero-day exploit was discovered, rolled into the user-friendly Blackhole exploit kit and used for nearly a week before Oracle issued a patch. That patch, however, also proved to be full of security bugs.
In April this year, Apple came under the scanner for Flashback malware that threatened OS X users by exploiting a vulnerability in Java. Dubbed as a BackDoor.Flashback.39 Trojan, the virus attacked over half-a-million computers.
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While Windows users are currently in fear of getting their systems hijacked by the WannaCry ransomware outbreak, Apple users are sitting relaxed, thinking that malware attacks are something that happens to Windows users, and not Apple.
But you are mistaken – Apple products are also not immune to the hack attacks and malware infections, as an ebook can hack your Mac, iPhone, and iPad.
Apple on Monday pushed out software updates for iOS, macOS, Safari, tvOS, iCloud, iTunes, and watchOS to fix a total of 67 unique security vulnerabilities, many of which allows attackers to perform remote code execution on an affected system.
iOS is 10.3.2 for iPhone, iPad, and iPod
Apple's mobile operating system iOS 10.3.2 for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch addresses 41 security flaws, 23 of which resides in WebKit, including 17 remote code execution and 5 cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities.
Besides this, iOS 10.3.2 also addresses a pair of flaws in iBooks for iOS (CVE-2017-2497, CVE-2017-6981) that could allow e-books to open arbitrary websites and execute malicious code with root privileges.
Other flaws addressed in iOS 10.3.2 include a memory corruption issue in AVE Video Encoder that could allow a malicious application to gain kernel-level privileges, and a certificate validation issue in the certificate trust policy for handling of untrusted certificates.
Apple users can install iOS 10.3.2 by connecting their iOS devices to iTunes or downloading it directly by going to the Settings → General → Software Update.
macOS Sierra 10.12.5 for El Capitan and Yosemite
Apple's Mac operating system macOS Sierra 10.12.5 addresses a total of 37 vulnerabilities, including a pair of bugs in iBook that allow the execution of arbitrary code with root privileges, and a separate bug in iBook that allows an application to escape its secure sandbox.
Other flaws addressed in macOS Sierra 10.12.5 include a Wi-Fi networking issue that allows the theft of network credentials, elevation of privilege bugs in both the Intel and Nvidia graphics drivers, and four different arbitrary code execution flaws in SQLite.
Mac users can download the update through the App Store → Updates. Alternatively, macOS Sierra users can be download Sierra 10.12.5 as a stand-alone update, OS X El Capitan users can download the update here, and OS X Yosemite users can get the security update here.
Safari 10.1.1 for Apple Browser
Safari 10.1.1 addresses a total of 26 security issues, 23 of which resides in WebKit, many of which are also patched in the iOS 10.3.2.
Rest three vulnerabilities are patched in the Safari browser itself.
The Safari 10.1.1 update can be downloaded by going to the App Store → Updates on El Capitan and Yosemite systems.
watchOS 3.2.2 for Apple Watch
Apple Watch users should install watchOS 3.2.2 that patches a total of 12 security vulnerabilities, four of which could be used by attackers to execute remote code execution on the affected device.
Users of Apple Watch can download watchOS 3.2.2 by connecting their watch to its charger, and opening the Apple Watch app → My Watch tab → General → Software Update on their iPhone.
tvOS 10.2.1 for Apple TV
Apple has also released tvOS 10.2.1 to patch a total of 23 vulnerabilities, 12 of which resides in WebKit engine that could allow an attacker to perform cross-site scripting and remote code execution attacks on a target device.
The tvOS 10.2.1 update can be downloaded directly from the Apple TV by going to Settings → System → Update Software.
iTunes 12.6.1 for Windows and iCloud for Windows 6.2.1
Meanwhile, Apple also released patches for Windows users using iTunes and iCloud. Both iTunes 12.6.1 and iCloud 6.2.1 patches a single remote code execution bug in WebKit for Windows 7 and later.
Apple users are recommended to update all their operating systems for Apple products and Safari as soon as possible before cyber criminals exploited them. Patches are available through automatic updates.
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Story highlightsEmbassy spokesman: France signed an agreement with U.S. authorities on Monday$60 million set aside for those deported to concentration camps on France's railwayMore than 6 million Jews died during the HolocaustSeven decades after being sent to Nazi concentration camps, survivors of the Holocaust will have the chance to get retribution -- from the government of France. France signed an agreement Monday with U.S. authorities to pay $60 million to Holocaust survivors transported to concentration camps, said Arnaud Guillois, a spokesman for the French Embassy in Washington.Patrizianna Sparacino-Thiellay, France's ambassador at large for human rights in charge of Holocaust issues, said Monday the agreement "is a further contribution to recognizing France's commitment to facing up to its historic responsibilities."The reparation programs set up immediately after the war, and those introduced in the past fifteen years, are the tangible symbol of the official acknowledgment in 1995 of France's 'imprescriptible debt' towards the victims of the Holocaust," Sparacino-Thiellay said.A joint statement from France's Foreign Affairs Ministry and the U.S. State Department noted that the accord shows the close relationship between the two countries."In this year marked by the commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the Allied landings in Normandy and Provence, this agreement further strengthens the historic friendship and ties between our two countries," the statement said.U.S. officials created the fund and will administer it. But Americans aren't the only ones eligible for compensation; victims living in nations that haven't signed Holocaust compensation agreements also can benefit, according to the embassy spokesman.A few thousand people may be eligible for some of the fund, according to Guillois.JUST WATCHEDBearing witness to the HolocaustReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHBearing witness to the Holocaust 08:54JUST WATCHEDAccused Nazi death camp guard caughtReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHAccused Nazi death camp guard caught 01:29JUST WATCHEDExtraordinary story of Holocaust defianceReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHExtraordinary story of Holocaust defiance 01:39This fund had been years in the making, and had come under intense pressure inside the United States, including efforts by American lawmakers to bar the SNCF, the French national railway, from bidding in U.S. markets until the issue is resolved.One piece of proposed legislation, the Holocaust Rail Justice Act, stated that more than 75,000 Jews and thousands of others were moved from France to Nazi concentration camps on SNCF trains. Those transported included U.S. citizens and their relatives, as well as American military pilots shot down during the war.An official at France's national railway declined to comment on the agreement when reached by CNN. Yet Guillois explained that the SNCF was not considered liable for the deportation of Jews in France, because it was commissioned by France's Vichy government -- which was formed after the armistice and collaborated with the Nazis -- to do so.This isn't the first time that France, which was invaded by Nazi Germany in 1940 before reaching an armistice agreement with Adolf Hitler's government later that year, has borne some responsibility for the Holocaust.As Guillois noted, this latest agreement is one of several mechanisms by the French government to compensate Holocaust victims since 1946, the year after World War II ended.The Nazis systematically killed more than 6 million Jews during the Holocaust, along with millions of other people who were religious and ethnic minorities, political dissidents, homosexuals or disabled, in death camps situated primarily in Germany and Eastern Europe.
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Aldi Bot - Buy a Botnet just in 10 Euros
Researchers of German security firm G Data have discovered that a bot builder dubbed "Aldi Bot" is currently being offered for that much on underground forums. The Aldi Bot Builder appears to be based on the ZeuS source code. The malware has nothing to do with the discount supermarket chain and it is not clear why its author chose to name the bot after Aldi – it is thought it may relate to the bot's discount pricing.
Company says "We've encountered a bot sale, which, in case it finds followers, can cause a massive glut of malware all over. The so-called "Aldi Bot" first appeared in late August and has been sold for the initial price of €10! Parts of the bot's code oddly look like ZeuS code…"
The Aldi Bot can read (saved) passwords from the Firefox web browser, Pidgin IM client and JDownloader download tool, and send them to a command and control server which is included in the €10 price tag. The Aldi Bot can also carry out Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks, as the bot's author demonstrates with a YouTube video showing an attack on the German Bundeskriminalamt (equivalent to the UK CID) web site. The bot can also be set up as a SOCKS proxy to use infected computers as proxies for protocols of the bot herder's choosing. Infecting systems with the discount malware does, however, require additional measures, such as exploit packs on infected web sites.
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Edward Snowden, a former contractor at America's National Security Agency (NSA), has rocked the intelligence world by leaking secret documents which reveal the previously unknown extent of global spying. But looks like the NSA isn't the only one using dirty digital tricks to hack its targets.
Back in September, it was reported that the UK's equivalent of the NSA, GCHQ had hacked Belgacom, a leading telecommunications provider in Belgium.
Some New analysis of the Snowden papers by German magazine Der Spiegel shows that British intelligence agency GCHQ created fake LinkedIn and Slashdot pages to spy on computers of Belgacom network engineers.
Communications networks are particularly valuable to spies, because they allow instant access to individual users. Belgacom provides internet access to dozens of key EU institutions based in its capital city Brussels and its global roaming exchange is a hub for connections between various international mobile networks.
GCHQ reportedly used a method called "quantum insert", to redirect employees of Belgacom, Belgium's largest telecommunications company, to fake websites that contained malware.
According to Der Spiegel, the first step for GCHQ was to identify employees at Belgacom working in its security and maintenance divisions, including finding out which ones use LinkedIn and Slashdot.
Then they redirected the intercepted traffic (using Man in the middle attack) to a spoofed server (codenamed "Fox Acid"), which can respond faster than the real one, is placed somewhere on the Internet backbone.
The documents reveal the extent to which spy agencies are able to use mobile communications to track people down and for surveillance. One document claimed, "We can locate, collect, exploit (in real time where appropriate) high-value mobile devices and services in a fully converged target centric manner."
A LinkedIn spokesman told Der Spiegel, "We were never told about this alleged activity and we would never approve of it, irrespective of what purpose it was used for."
It's unclear whether the GCHQ has its own version of FoxAcid or whether it just piggybacks on the NSA's servers as per their unique surveillance cooperation relationship. Slashdot hasn't responded to a request for comment.
I wonder if there is any possibility that LinkedIn and Slashdot can go after the government on legal basis for effectively attacking their servers?
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Washington (CNN)Two hours after emailing a real estate newsletter of luxury homes to thousands of ultra-wealthy clients Friday morning, Shawn Elliott, president of the ultra luxury division at Nest Seekers International, said he received three inquiries. They were not from potential buyers, but sellers.The calls came from New York and Miami, two hot spots popular with wealthy Russians, a possible sign of what may become the rapid sale of luxury homes, beachfront properties and apartments in the cities' skylines as Russians scramble to get ahead of international sanctions."People like that have their handlers call," Elliott said of the Russian owners. They asked, "'If I was to sell, how fast could you sell this and how fast could you sell that?'""It's interesting how the feelers are going out," he noted. "Maybe that's the beginning of the scramble."The impact of coordinated sanctions from the US, United Kingdom and European Union has sent shockwaves through the Russian elite as oligarchs, some targeted and others taking steps in anticipation of what could come, look to move yachts, shed assets and adapt to a wave of sanctions that have come swifter than usual, and are more expansive than before. Read MoreRussian billionaire Roman Abramovich, who has not been sanctioned, announced Wednesday that he will sell the Chelsea Football Club as it is "in the best interest of the Club, the fans, the employees, as well as the Club's sponsors and partners." He said net proceeds from the sale would go to a foundation established to help "victims of the war in Ukraine."Roman Abramovich, Russian owner of Chelsea FC, to sell club after Ukraine invasionRussian billionaires Mikhail Fridman and Oleg Deripaska have broken ranks with the Kremlin and called for an end to Russia's war in Ukraine. The EU announced sanctions against Fridman this past week and Deripaska has been on the US sanction list since 2018."This is a very worrying moment if you're a Russian billionaire," said former State Department official Max Bergmann. "Lawyers are busy right now, trying to figure out how to expunge oligarchs from various company boards and how to divest assets in the United States." "We're getting a new inquiry every hour," said Erich Ferrari, a lawyer who represents foreign companies and individuals in navigating sanctions. "The phone has been ringing off the hook with people all around the world who have been sanctioned or their parent company has been sanctioned."Financial institutions in jurisdictions where there are no sanctions, such as United Arab Emirates, are following the lead of the US and European Union and freezing accounts held by Russians, Ferrari said. Some Caribbean countries -- where Russian-controlled entities have domiciled offshore businesses for secrecy -- will no longer serve as corporate secretaries for such entities, leaving many of them unable to operate, Ferrari added."I don't recall a program" of international sanctions, Ferrari said, that "has sent everybody scrambling."The scramble comes as the White House announced full blocking sanctions Thursday on eight Russian elites, plus their family members and associates. They will all be blocked off from the US financial system, meaning their assets in the United States will be frozen and their property will be blocked from use. "This caused a sudden panic," Bergmann noted, "because the old guard class, I think, interestingly enough, didn't know that this [invasion] was coming, and I think they were surprised that (Russian President) Vladimir Putin ultimately decided to invade."Bergmann explained that an oligarch can ultimately sue to try to stop the sanctions, but in the short term, these Russian billionaires are selling off and shipping out."What you're seeing already are oligarchs freaking out about this and moving their yachts to places where they can't be extradited," Bergmann said. "We've seen yachts start to sail for Montenegro, where there's no extradition treaty."The Amore Vero yacht at a shipyard in La Ciotat, in southern France, on March 3, 2022.On Wednesday, French officials seized a yacht that they said was linked to Igor Sechin, a sanctioned Russian oil executive and close associate of Putin, as it was preparing to flee a port. But the company that manages the ship denied Sechin was the owner.In New York, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine is calling for more sanctions on Russians and the seizure of their properties, tweeting Thursday, "We're still waiting for the U.S. gov't to place the broad circle of oligarchs connected to Putin on the sanctions list. This is the prerequisite to seizing the ultra luxury homes many hold in Manhattan. We need action on this NOW."The Biden administration isn't just levying sanctions. On Wednesday, the Justice Department unveiled a new task force: KleptoCapture. The task force will team up prosecutors with experts in sanctions, money laundering and national security to investigate possible criminal activity from the ultra-rich Russians who the U.S. government believes are propping up Putin."We will leave no stone unturned in our efforts to investigate, arrest and prosecute those whose criminal acts enable the Russian government to continue this unjust war," Attorney General Merrick Garland said when announcing the new task force.Experts watching the effort unfold across multiple government agencies -- the Treasury and Justice departments at the forefront -- believe the amount of coordination is unprecedented and signals a determination to go after these oligarchs and any illegal activities with renewed force.Inside the months of work that allowed the US and its allies to turn Russia into a financial pariah overnight"It can take quite a bit of prosecutorial and regulatory heft to enforce sanctions on extraordinarily wealthy individuals who have a lot of resources," said Edward Fishman, a former State Department Russia sanctions lead. "By putting together this high-level task force that clearly has oversight by some of the most senior officials in the Biden administration, I think it signals they are going to enforce these sanctions quite aggressively."Many oligarchs use shell companies that shield their ownership, leaving authorities to untangle a layer of companies before discovering the true owner. "Part of the reason why we haven't seen a lot of legal action is because these oligarchs are extremely rich and even though many are committing white-collar crime, they hire really high-priced lawyers to do things correctly," said Bergmann, the former State Department official. "What oligarchs have done is just make it not worth law enforcement's time to pursue them," Bergmann said. "And what Biden has said is no, no, no, we're going to make time and we're going to devote the assets, and we're going to devote the people to really start opening up the books, knocking on doors, and seeing what we find."This crackdown could ultimately cause upheaval within Russia, experts warn. "One problem for Putin is that he has a very angry class of people who are very rich and powerful that are all returning to Moscow and St. Petersburg, and they don't want to be there," Bergmann said. One possible area of vulnerability for Russians in the US is the millions of dollars Russian oligarchs have poured into property in New York, Miami, and elsewhere.Elliott, of Nest Seekers International, said wealthy Russians are savvy and he predicted, "There's going to be liquidation from these guys because they're smart. They'll put it at least 20% below market price because at the end of the day 80% of something is better than ... nothing."Time is of the essence for some Russians who are not currently sanctioned but may be worried that they're next. "As of today, there's nothing illegal about liquidating your assets," Elliott said.
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As much as you protect your electronics from being hacked, hackers are clever enough at finding new ways to get into your devices. But, you would hope that once a flaw discovered it would at least be fixed in few days or weeks, but that's not always the case.
A three-year-old security vulnerability within a software component used by more than 6.1 Million smart devices still remains unpatched by many vendors, thereby placing Smart TVs, Routers, Smartphones, and other Internet of Things (IoT) products at risk of exploit.
Security researchers at Trend Micro have brought the flaw to light that has been known since 2012 but has not been patched yet.
Remote Code Execution Vulnerabilities
Researchers discovered a collection of Remote Code Execution (RCE) vulnerabilities in the Portable SDK for UPnP, or libupnp component – a software library used by mobile devices, routers, smart TVs, and other IoT devices to stream media files over a network.
The flaws occur due to a buffer overflow in Simple Service Discovery Protocol (SSDP), potentially allowing hackers to take full control over the targeted device running the vulnerable version of the software development kit (SDK).
According to the researchers, the vulnerabilities were actually patched in 2012, but many applications still use the outdated versions of the library, allowing remote code execution attacks against devices with flawed apps installed.
"We found 547 apps that used older versions of libupnp, 326 of which are available on the Google Play store," Trend Micro mobile analyst Veo Zhang wrote in a blog post published Thursday.
Vulnerable Apps Downloaded by Millions of People
The biggest app affected by the flaw is QQMusic, which is used by over 100 Million people in China alone and has been downloaded by millions of Android users from the Google Play store. However, the security issue has since been fixed by the developers.
The Netflix application, also downloaded by Millions of people, was also thought to be affected by the flaw though the researchers say:
"Upon further clarification with Netflix, we learned that Netflix uses their own fork of libupnp due to an API that is no longer a part of newer libupnp versions. However, their fork contains the fixes from newer versions of libupnp as well, so we believe they are not affected by potential remote code execution attacks targeting this vulnerability."
Other popular applications using the outdated version of the library include nScreen Mirroring for Samsung, CameraAccess Plus and Smart TV Remote.
List of Vulnerable Apps
Here's the list of some apps, Trend Micro knows, are vulnerable and has actually tested:
Common Name
Package Name
AirSmartPlayer
com.gk.airsmart.main
Big2Small
com.alitech.dvbtoip
CameraAccess plus
jp.co.pixela.cameraaccessplus
G-MScreen
mktvsmart.screen
HexLink Remote (TV client)
hihex.sbrc.services
HexLink-SmartTV remote control
com.hihex.hexlink
Hisense Android TV Remote
com.hisense.commonremote
nScreen Mirroring for Samsung
com.ht.nscreen.mirroring
Ooredoo TV Oman
com.ooredootv.ooredoo
PictPrint – WiFi Print App –
jp.co.tandem.pictprint
qa.MozaicGO.Android
Mozaic GO
QQMusic
com.tencent.qqmusic
QQ音乐HD
com.tencent.qqmusicpad
Smart TV Remote
com.hisense.common
Wifi Entertainment
com.infogo.entertainment.wifi
モバイルTV(StationTV)
jp.pixela.px01.stationtv.localtuner.full.app
에브리온TV (무료 실시간 TV)
com.everyontv
多屏看看
com.letv.smartControl
海信分享
com.hisense.hishare.hall
Though the makers of QQMusic and LinPhone have addressed the issue and released fixes for their apps, users are advised to check their devices for one of these apps and if discovered, simply removed it or check for an update.
The security researchers are continuing to find out more vulnerable app.
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(CNN)While a civil case from a woman alleging she was raped by soccer mega star Cristiano Ronaldo was voluntarily dismissed in Nevada state court last month, it remains open in US federal court, an attorney for the accuser told CNN on Wednesday.Multiple media outlets previously reported that Kathryn Mayorga's lawsuit was "quietly dropped." However that's not the case, attorney Larissa Drohobyczer said to CNN."The state case was dismissed by us because we filed the identical claims in federal court due to federal court's rules on serving foreigners," Drohobyczer said. "We basically just switched venues, but the claims remain."The case, originally filed in October in the Eighth District Civil Court in Las Vegas by Mayorga, alleges that Ronaldo raped her in a Las Vegas hotel penthouse suite in 2009. An identical case, which was filed in US District Court for the District of Nevada in January, remains open and active.CNN has reached out multiple times to attorneys for Ronaldo, who plays for Juventus, and has not heard back.Read MoreThe Christiansen Law firm, who is handling the case, has released statements previously, saying in October: "Mr. Ronaldo vehemently denies all of the allegations in the Complaint and has consistently maintained that denial for the last nine years."The criminal investigation into the rape accusation remains open, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department told CNN on Wednesday.The 34-year-old Ronaldo is currently featuring for Portugal's international team in UEFA's Nations League tournament and scored a hat-trick in a 3-1 win over Switzerland on Wednesday.READ: Joao Felix: The Benfica teen who is a 'star already'Portugal will play England or Holland in Sunday's final.
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A new version of COMpfun remote access trojan (RAT) has been discovered in the wild that uses HTTP status codes to control compromised systems targeted in a recent campaign against diplomatic entities in Europe.
The cyberespionage malware—traced to Turla APT with "medium-to-low level of confidence" based on the history of compromised victims—spread via an initial dropper that masks itself as a visa application, the Global Research and Analysis Team at Kaspersky discovered.
The Turla APT, a Russian-based threat group, has a long history of carrying out espionage and watering hole attacks spanning various sectors, including governments, embassies, military, education, research, and pharmaceutical companies.
First documented by G-Data in 2014, COMpfun received a significant upgrade last year (called "Reductor") after Kaspersky found that the malware was used to spy on a victim's browser activity by staging man-in-the-middle (MitM) attacks on encrypted web traffic via a tweak in the browser's random numbers generator (PRNG).
In addition to functioning as a fully-featured RAT capable of capturing keystrokes, screenshots, and exfiltrating sensitive data, this new variant of COMpfun monitors for any removable USB devices plugged to the infected systems to spread further and receives commands from an attacker-controlled server in the form of HTTP status codes.
"We observed an interesting C2 communication protocol utilizing rare HTTP/HTTPS status codes (check IETF RFC 7231, 6585, 4918)," the researchers said. "Several HTTP status codes (422-429) from the Client Error class let the Trojan know what the operators want to do. After the control server sends the status 'Payment Required' (402), all these previously received commands are executed."
HTTP status codes are standardized responses issued by a server in response to a client's request made to the server. By issuing remote commands in the form of status codes, the idea is to obfuscate any detection of malicious activity while scanning internet traffic.
"The authors keep the RSA public key and unique HTTP ETag in encrypted configuration data. Created for web content caching reasons, this marker could also be used to filter unwanted requests to the C2, e.g., those that are from network scanners rather than targets."
"To exfiltrate the target's data to the C2 over HTTP/HTTPS, the malware uses RSA encryption. To hide data locally, the Trojan implements LZNT1 compression and one-byte XOR encryption."
While the exact modus operandi behind how the malicious visa application is delivered to a target remains unclear, the initial dropper, upon download, runs the next stage of malware, which communicates with the command-and-control (C2) server using an HTTP status-based module.
"The malware operators retained their focus on diplomatic entities, and the choice of a visa-related application — stored on a directory shared within the local network — as the initial infection vector worked in their favor," Kaspersky researchers concluded.
"The combination of a tailored approach to their targets and the ability to generate and execute their ideas certainly makes the developers behind COMpfun a strong offensive team.
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Story highlightsSecond seed Rafael Nadal through to the fourth round of Miami MastersThe three-time runner-up at the U.S. hard-court event beat Czech Radek StepanekNo. 4 Andy Murray handed a walkover after opponent Milos Raonic had to withdrawMurray handed a walkover after opponent Milos Raonic had to withdraw through injuryWorld No. 2 Rafael Nadal is still on course for his first Miami Masters title after beating the Czech Republic's Radek Stepanek 6-2 6-2 in the third round of the U.S. hard-court tournament.Spain's 10-time grand slam winner has been runner-up at the event on three occasions, including last year when he lost to Novak Djokovic, who went on to dethrone him at the top of the rankings. Nadal took just 87 minutes to record a sixth consecutive win over 25th seed Stepanek on Sunday, setting up a clash with No. 16 Kei Nishikori -- who also beat Czech opposition in the shape of Lukas Rosol."He's a fantastic player and it will be a very difficult match for me," Nadal said of Japan's 22-year-old rising star. "He has a big talent to hit the ball very early, to play very aggressive. So he will be a really tough opponent."JUST WATCHEDAndy Murray's consistent yearReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHAndy Murray's consistent year 07:29World No. 4 Andy Murray reached the last 16 without hitting a ball, after his in-form third-round opponent Milos Raonic was forced to pull out due to an ankle injury in Key Biscayne."The doctor doesn't think it's anything big. It probably just needs a couple days of rest and, with treatment, it should be OK in a week," said the Canadian, who has already won titles in Chennai and San Jose this year.Murray will now face Gilles Simon for a place in the quarterfinals after the French 13th seed won 7-6 6-4 against Austrian 22nd seed Jurgen Melzer.In other third-round matches, seventh-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych slumped to a shock 6-3 2-6 6-4 defeat by Grigor Dimitrov, who beat a top-10 player for the first time in his career.The Bulgarian next faces Serbian ninth seed Janko Tipsarevic, who saw off Ukrainian No. 18 Alexandr Dolgopolov 6-4 5-7 6-2.French sixth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga defeated No. 32 Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-4 7-6, and will next face another German -- No. 19 Florian Mayer. The winner of that match will face Nadal or Nishikori.In the women's section, the unseeded Venus Williams, who was handed a wildcard to compete in Florida, is also through to the last 16.The American, who was diagnosed with the incurable Sjogren's syndrome before the 2011 U.S. Open, was made to battle hard before defeating Canadian Aleksandra Wozniak 4-6 6-4 7-6.She next faces fellow former world No. 1 Ana Ivanovic. The Serbian 15th seed overcame Slovakia's No. 20 Daniela Hantuchova 6-2 7-6 (7-2).World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka, the defending champion, thrashed British wildcard Heather Watson 6-0 6-2. The Australian Open champion will play No.16 Dominika Cibulkova after the Slovakian beat China's Zheng Jie.Polish fifth seed Agnieszka Radwanska set up a clash with Spanish wildcard Garbine Muguruza Blanc, who shocked Italy's No. 24 Flavia Pennetta 6-2 1-6 7-6.French seventh seed Marion Bartoli will face Russia's No. 22 Maria Kirilenko in the last 16 after both won comfortably.
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Cisco has warned of an active zero-day vulnerability in its router software that's being exploited in the wild and could allow a remote, authenticated attacker to carry out memory exhaustion attacks on an affected device.
"An attacker could exploit these vulnerabilities by sending crafted IGMP traffic to an affected device," Cisco said in an advisory posted over the weekend.
"A successful exploit could allow the attacker to cause memory exhaustion, resulting in instability of other processes. These processes may include, but are not limited to, interior and exterior routing protocols."
Although the company said it will release software fixes to address the flaw, it did not share a timeline for when it plans to make it available. The networking equipment maker said it became aware of attempts to exploit the flaw on August 28.
Tracked as CVE-2020-3566, the severity of the vulnerability has been rated "high" with a Common Vulnerability Scoring System score of 8.6 out of a maximum 10.
The bug affects all Cisco gear running its Internetwork Operating System (IOS) XR Software and stems from an issue in the Distance Vector Multicast Routing Protocol (DVMRP) feature that makes it possible for an adversary to send specially crafted Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP) packets to the susceptible device in question and exhaust process memory.
IGMP is typically used to efficiently use resources for multicasting applications when supporting streaming content such as online video streaming and gaming. The flaw lies in the manner IOS XR Software queues these packets, potentially causing memory exhaustion and disruption of other processes.
While there are no workarounds to resolve the issue, Cisco recommends administrators to run the "show igmp interface" command to determine if multicast routing is enabled.
"If the output of 'show igmp interface' is empty, multicast routing is not enabled and the device is not affected by these vulnerabilities," the company said.
Additionally, admins can also check the system logs for signs of memory exhaustion and implement rate-limiting to reduce IGMP traffic rates to mitigate the risk.
Cisco didn't elaborate on how the attackers were exploiting this vulnerability and with what goal in mind.
But given that resource exhaustion attacks are also a form of denial-of-service attacks, it wouldn't be surprising if bad actors are leveraging the flaw to interfere with the regular functioning of the system.
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There's a scam spreading through Twitter Direct messages (DMs) and fake emails, appealing users to visit a fake twitter phishing site i.e "twittler.com". Scam uses a hijacked Twitter account to send out direct messages that appear completely legitimate.
Security blogger, Janne Ahlberg blogged about this new phishing scam, "This is a nasty trick especially when the sender is someone you know and trust. If you receive a suspicious DM or email from a person you know and trust, just warn him/her – the account is most likely hijacked and controlled by the attackers."
The webpage resembles a Twitter login page and is trying to obtain your Twitter login credentials with a domain name looks very similar to original Twitter.com, with two extra word "LL" in it.
To play it safe, double-check your browser address bar to make sure that's where you are on orginal website twitter.com before logging in.
If you enter your Twitter username and password into this site, you will become a victim of and the hacker will then control your Twitter account to hack more users via spamming them on your behalf.
What do you do if your account is hacked? Change your password immediately, Check what applications you've given access to your account, Revoke access for any suspicious applications, and delete tweets and DMs you sent and received while your account was compromised.
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As many non-tech savvy people think that Bitcoin looks like a Gold coin as illustrated in many stock images, perhaps these robbers also planned to rob a cryptocurrency exchange thinking that way.
All jokes apart, we saw one such attempt on Tuesday morning, when three men armed with handguns entered the offices of a Canadian Bitcoin exchange in Ottawa, and restrained four of its employees.
The intruders then struck one of the employees in the head with a handgun, asking them to make an outbound transaction from the cryptocurrency exchange.
A fifth employee in another cabin, who remained unseen in an office, called the police before any assets could be taken, and the robbers left empty-handed.
One of the suspects arrested later Wednesday after arriving police officers saw him run into a ravine north of Colonnade Road and deployed "extensive resources," including K-9 unit officers, to find him, CBC News reports.
"Police are looking for two additional suspects, both described as black males," the police says. "Investigators are also interested in identifying and speaking to a person of interest that was inside the premise as the suspects arrived. That person did not remain at the scene."
The suspect in custody, identified as 19-year-old Jimmy St-Hilaire, has been charged with the following offences:
5 counts of robbery with a firearm
5 counts of point a firearm
5 counts of forcible confinement
Wear disguise
Conspiracy to Commit an indictable offence
Carry concealed weapon
Possess firearm while prohibited
Possess weapon for committing an offence
Possess loaded regulated firearm
St-Hilaire is set to appear in court on January 24, 2018. Ottawa police are now looking for the remaining two suspects.
The authorities have not revealed the name of the cryptocurrency exchange.
A similar incident happened last month when armed robbers kidnapped a top executive at UK-registered crypto-exchange EXMO Finance and allegedly stole more than $1.8 million of Ether for releasing him.
The New York District Attorney's Office charged New Jersey native Louis Meza for the kidnapping and robbery, claiming Meza held "demanded that the victim turns over his cell phone, wallet, and keys while holding the victim at gunpoint."
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Adobe releases open source malware classification tool
Adobe Systems has released a malware classification tool in order to help security incident first responders, malware analysts and security researchers more easily identify malicious binary files.
The 'Adobe Malware Classifier' tool uses machine learning algorithms to classify Windows executable and dynamic link library (DLL) files as clean, malicious or unknown, Adobe security engineer Karthik Raman said in a recent blog post, Raman originally developed Malware Classifier for in-house use by Adobe's Product Security Incident Response (PSIRT) Team.
When run, the tool extracts seven key attributes from every analyzed binary file and compares them to data obtained by running the J48, J48 Graft, PART, and Ridor machine-learning algorithms on a set of 100,000 malicious programs and 16,000 clean ones, Raman said.
"Malware classification can be a difficult task for even experienced analysts, especially in the modern era of highly obfuscated code, binaries that are designed to evade scanners and anti-malware applications. Determining whether an odd binary is potentially malicious can be a frustrating and time-consuming task".
It is available for download from SourceForge.
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(CNN)A central Georgia sheriff is calling for changes in the mental health system after a sheriff's deputy was shot in the chest by a suspect. The suspect, 24-year-old Zachary Lucas Olivar, has a "history of mental illness," Jones County Sheriff R. N. Reece said."We have received reports that he has been having issues for the past week, with several attempts made by his family to get him help," Reece said in a post on the Facebook account of the sheriff's office.These mental health crises ended in fatal police encounters. Now, some communities are trying a new approachCNN attempted to contact Olivar's family but has not heard back and has not been able to confirm his mental health status. On Tuesday, the sheriff's department released body and dash camera video from three deputies involved in the arrest. The edited video shows the man shooting one of the deputies in the chest at close range, then driving off. That deputy was hit in his bullet proof vest and survived, Reece said on Facebook.Read MoreThe incident happened early Sunday morning during a traffic stop, a Sunday post from the sheriff's office said. In video of the incident posted by the office, the deputy can be seen interacting for several minutes with Olivar, who is sitting in a white car on the side of the road. There's a new approach to police response to mental health emergencies. Taking the police out of itAt one point, the deputy asks the Olivar, "You okay man? I need to get you an ambulance?" to which the man responded, "No sir, I'm just really cold." He later began to repeat "this is my home" as the deputy asked him to get out of the car several times. The video then shows the man pull out a gun covered in what appears to be a towel and shoot Deputy John Kile in the chest. Kile's bulletproof vest "saved his life," the sheriff wrote on Facebook, and the deputy was able to call in the incident and pursue the suspect.Following a chase, and with the assistance of other deputies, authorities were able to stop the suspect's car using stop sticks and a PIT maneuver, the sheriff's office said Tuesday. Olivar was taken into custody and is being held at the Jones County Sheriff's Office with no bond, according to the sheriff's office. More than a dozen cities push to minimize or even eliminate police presence at mental health calls"Unfortunately we hear about situations like this on a regular basis," Reece said on Facebook. "Families are struggling to get help for loved ones with mental health issues; however, it seems all too often that these individuals fall through the cracks. Unfortunately it sometimes takes an incident like this one to show how important accessibility to mental health care really is." "Our hope is that this incident brings about a much needed change in the mental health system," the sheriff said, adding he hopes "our legislature can be a driving force behind this change."Olivar is charged with two counts of felony aggravated assault, one count of felony possession of firearm/knife during the commission of crime, one count of felony fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer and two misdemeanors, reckless driving and failure to maintain lane, according to the arrest warrants issued Tuesday. Kile was treated and released from a local medical center following the shooting, the sheriff's office said.
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A Nigerian threat actor has been observed attempting to recruit employees by offering them to pay $1 million in bitcoins to deploy Black Kingdom ransomware on companies' networks as part of an insider threat scheme.
"The sender tells the employee that if they're able to deploy ransomware on a company computer or Windows server, then they would be paid $1 million in bitcoin, or 40% of the presumed $2.5 million ransom," Abnormal Security said in a report published Thursday. "The employee is told they can launch the ransomware physically or remotely. The sender provided two methods to contact them if the employee is interested—an Outlook email account and a Telegram username."
Black Kingdom, also known as DemonWare and DEMON, attracted attention earlier this March when threat actors were found exploiting ProxyLogon flaws impacting Microsoft Exchange Servers to infect unpatched systems with the ransomware strain.
Abnormal Security, which detected and blocked the phishing emails on August 12, responded to the solicitation attempt by creating a fictitious persona and reached out to the actor on Telegram messenger, only to have the individual inadvertently spill the attack's modus operandi, which included two links for an executable ransomware payload that the "employee" could download from WeTransfer or Mega.nz.
"The actor also instructed us to dispose of the .EXE file and delete it from the recycle bin. Based on the actor's responses, it seems clear that he 1) expects an employee to have physical access to a server, and 2) he's not very familiar with digital forensics or incident response investigations," said Crane Hassold, director of threat intelligence at Abnormal Security.
Besides taking a flexible approach to their ransom demands, the plan is believed to have been concocted by the chief executive of a Lagos-based social networking startup, with the goal of using the siphoned funds to "build my own company." In one of the conversations that took place over the course of five days, the individual even took to calling himself "the next Mark Zuckerberg."
Also of particular note is the method of using LinkedIn to collect corporate email addresses of senior-level executives, once again highlighting how business email compromise (BEC) attacks originating from Nigeria continue to evolve and expose businesses to sophisticated attacks like ransomware.
"There's always been a blurry line between cyberattacks and social engineering, and this is an example of how the two are intertwined. As people become better at recognizing and avoiding phishing, it should be no surprise to see attackers adopt new tactics to accomplish their goals," Tim Erlin, vice president of product management and strategy at Tripwire, said.
"The idea of a disgruntled insider as a cybersecurity threat isn't new. As long as organizations require employees, there will always be some insider risk. The promise of getting a share of the ransom might seem attractive, but there's almost zero guarantee that this kind of complicity will actually be rewarded, and it's highly likely that someone taking this attacker up on their offer would get caught," Erlin added.
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(CNN)The European Union's highest court ruled on Monday that Poland must "immediately suspend" a law that forces Supreme Court judges over age 65 to retire. Critics of Poland's right-wing Law and Justice party, known as PiS, led by Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, said the law was an attempt to take greater control over the judiciary.In the Law on the Supreme Court, which was introduced in April, the retirement age of Supreme Court judges was lowered from 70 to 65 -- a move pushing 27 of the 72 sitting judges off the bench. The measure was met by protests across the country and further escalated tensions between the European Union and Poland's government.Critics of Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki's government said the law was an attempt to take greater control over the judiciary.In October, the European Union Court of Justice, or ECJ, implemented an interim ruling to scrap the law, and on Monday it upheld that decision until the court can make a permanent one next year.Read More"Poland must immediately suspend the application of the provisions of national legislation relating to the lowering of the retirement age for Supreme Court judges," the ECJ statement says.Demonstrators protest against Poland's Law on the Supreme Court in Warsaw in July.The ECJ's order backs the European Commission, the politically independent executive branch of the EU, in its battle against Warsaw, which it launched in September.Polish president signs law making it easier to replace Supreme Court headWhile the final court ruling is due next year, the European Commission felt it necessary to ask the ECJ for interim measures to be applied because the ruling might come too late for the damage to be reversed, a spokesperson for the court said. Other interim measures in the order include taking "all necessary measures to ensure that the Supreme Court judges concerned by the provisions at issue may continue to perform their duties in the same post" and "refrain(ing) from adopting any measure concerning the appointment of judges to the Supreme Court to replace the Supreme Court judges concerned by those provisions," according to an ECJ statement.CNN's Warda Aljawahiry contributed to this report.
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New York (CNN Business)Workers in the Michigan auto industry could lose up to $51 million in wages this week, due to the trucker protest at the US-Canada border, according to Anderson Economic Group. The lost wages are a result of the shutdowns of the Blue Water and Ambassador bridges coupled with shutdowns at identified plants in Delta, Michigan and Ingersoll, Brampton, Windsor, Oakville, Cambridge and Woodstock Ontario. The shutdowns on the Canadian side affect the operation of part plants in Michigan. The calculation of lost wages also takes into account the impact on suppliers and transit workers -- many who work on hourly wages."This is a serious disruption with significant human impacts," said Patrick Anderson, CEO of Anderson Economic Group. "With the industry already short-handed and production lines awaiting parts, any further interruption is very costly."US business leaders sound the alarm on US-Canada border blockadeCanada does not have its own auto industry. Instead, US automakers like GM (GM), Ford (F), and Stellantis run the plants there. Anderson Economic Group, which specializes in auto industry analysis, also factored in affected workers from Honda (HMC) and Toyota (TM) and warned that if the border crossing remains blocked for longer than this week, the $51 million in direct lost wages would, "climb at an accelerating pace."Ford announced it was running its factories at reduced capacity in Oakville and Windsor, Ontario, while General Motors canceled shifts at its Lansing assembly plant. Stellantis also reported cutting shifts short this week. But both GM and Stellantis said all plants opened normally Friday.Read MoreUS automakers have been plagued by supply chain shortages -- in particular the elusive semiconductor computer chip -- which is needed in all cars. Therefore, fewer new cars have come to market, driving up costs. This disruption could only exacerbate that issue.
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(CNN)Cristiano Ronaldo has denied the rape allegations made against him by an American woman, saying he has a "clear conscience."Kathryn Mayorga says the Portuguese footballer, who now plays for Italian club Juventus, raped her in a Las Vegas hotel room in 2009 while she repeatedly screamed no, according to a lawsuit filed Friday in Clark County, Nevada.Follow @cnnsport
"I firmly deny the accusations being issued against me," Ronaldo wrote on Twitter. "Rape is an abominable crime that goes against everything that I am and believe in. "Keen as I may be to clear my name, I refuse to feed the media spectacle created by people seeking to promote themselves at my expense.I firmly deny the accusations being issued against me. Rape is an abominable crime that goes against everything that I am and believe in. Keen as I may be to clear my name, I refuse to feed the media spectacle created by people seeking to promote themselves at my expense.— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) October 3, 2018
"My clear conscience will thereby allow me to await with tranquility the results of any and all investigations."Read MoreIt's not the first time Ronaldo has taken to social media to put forward his side of the story.My clear conscious will thereby allow me to await with tranquillity the results of any and all investigations.— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) October 3, 2018
The 33-year-old appeared to dispute the claims in an Instagram live post on Friday: "What they said today, fake -- fake news. They want to promote by my name. It's normal. They want to be famous -- to say my name. Yeah but it's part of the job. I'm (a) happy man and all, all good."Leslie Stovall, Mayorga's co-counsel, was not immediately available to provide a response to Ronaldo's tweets.On Tuesday, Stovall said Mayorga's complaint and her "psychological" injuries, as well as the physical evidence, the settlement and Ronaldo's alleged answers to questions about the assault, are not fake news.Las Vegas police have re-opened the rape complaint made by Mayorga against Ronaldo. Attorney Larissa Drohobyczer told reporters in Las Vegas on Wednesday that Mayorga shows signs of post-traumatic stress disorder, according to a psychiatrist hired by the Stovall firm.Mayorga's lawsuit accuses Ronaldo and his team of taking advantage of her fragile emotional state to coerce her into signing a settlement and nondisclosure agreement in 2009.She claims she received $375,000 in exchange for her silence. Her lawsuit seeks to void the settlement and agreement."We believe we have the factual basis to ask the court to set aside the agreement so we can litigate ... for damages," Stovall said at the news conference. He said there are concerns about the statute of limitations for the civil case in Nevada.Mayorga was not at the news conference; Stovall said she temporarily has left the Las Vegas area.He said the #MeToo movement gave his client "a lot of courage" to come forward.READ: Rape allegations against Cristiano Ronaldo 'not fake news,' says accuser's lawyerREAD: Cristiano Ronaldo sued over alleged rape in Las Vegas hotel roomRonaldo is next due to play for Juventus against Udinese on Saturday. He missed Tuesday's Champions League victory over Young Boys following his red card against Valencia.CNN's Chris Boyette, Emanuella Grinberg, Shawn Nottingham, Artemis Moshtaghian, Eliott C. McLaughlin, Aimee Lewis, AnneClaire Stapleton, Amanda Jackson and Elena Gyldenkerne contributed reporting.
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A security researcher has won $24,000 from Microsoft for finding a critical flaw in its Live.com authentication system that could allow hackers to gain access to a user's complete Outlook account or other Microsoft services.
Microsoft's Live.com is the authentication system that everyone go through while attempting to authenticate to Outlook.com and a large number of other Microsoft services, including OneDrive, Windows Phone, Skype, and Xbox LIVE.
Hacking Hotmail (Outlook.com) Account
It's one account for all services. So, if say, Outlook wants to access other apps, it uses a standard set of authentication code called OAuth.
OAuth is an open standard for authorization that keeps your passwords safe on third-party sites and instead of sharing your password, it shares a special key called 'Access token' to access the app.
OAuth authorizations are accomplished through a prompt, as shown below and to allow an app to gain access to your account, you need to click 'Yes'.
However, Synack security researcher Wesley Wineberg found an amazing hack that allowed him to bypass Microsoft's OAuth protection mechanism using his malicious 'proof-of-concept' app, named 'Evil App.'
According to the technical details posted by security researcher, attacker's malicious app can effectively gain access to everything in victim's account just by tricking the victim into visiting a web page, which required no other user interaction.
Exploit Demonstration
You can watch the video demonstration below that shows the attack in work:
What's more concerning about this vulnerability, according to Wineberg, is that it could have been exploited and abused by malicious hackers to create a nasty email worm.
"Using this as a targeted attack definitely has a high impact, but this is also the perfect type of vulnerability to turn into a worm," Wineberg wrote. "A worm could easily email all of a user's contacts, with something enticing…and spread to every user who clicks the link."
However, Microsoft patched the vulnerability in mid-September and paid out a whopping $24,000 to Wineberg as part of Microsoft's tech titan's bug bounty program.
Earlier this week, Cybereason security researchers discovered more issues in Microsoft's Outlook app that affected business' users.
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It's not at all surprising that the Google Play Store is surrounded by a number of malicious applications that may gain users' attention to fall victim for one, but this time it might be even worse than you thought.
Threat researchers from security firm ESET have discovered a malicious Facebook-Credentials-Stealing Trojan masquerading as an Android game that has been downloaded by more than a Million Android users.
Malicious Android Apps downloaded 50,000-1,000,000 times
The Android game, dubbed "Cowboy Adventure," and another malicious game, dubbed "Jump Chess" – downloaded up to 50,000 times, have since been removed from Google Play Store.
However, before taking them off from the app store, the creepy game apps may have compromised an unknown number of victims' Facebook credentials.
Both the games were created by the same software developer, Tinker Studio and both were used to gather social media credentials from unsuspecting users.
How Cowboy Adventure victimizes Android users?
Once installed, Cowboy Adventure produced a fake Facebook login window that prompted users to enter their Facebook usernames along with their passwords. A practice known as OAuth in which a 3rd party asks your Facebook login.
However, if users provide their credentials to Cowboy Adventure app, the malicious code within the game app allegedly sent their credentials to the attacker's server.
Therefore, If you have downloaded Cowboy Adventure or Jump Chess, you should immediately change not alone your Facebook password, but any service that uses the same combination of username and password as your Facebook account.
ESET senior security researcher Robert Lipovsky believes that the app malicious behavior is not just a careless mistake of the game developer, but the developer is actually a criminal minded.
Take Away
A few basic tips that you should always keep in your mind are:
Always download apps from official sources, such as Google Play Store or Apple's App Store.
Read reviews from other users before downloading an app (Many users complained about "Cowboy Adventure" that the game locked them out of Facebook accounts).
Always use two-factor authentication on services that makes it harder for hackers to access your accounts with just your password.
Always keep a malware scanning software from trusted vendors like Avast, AVG, ESET, Kaspersky and Bitdefender, on your smartphone.
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(CNN)A bipartisan group of senators is sharing concern with the Biden administration about the potential of widespread Russian cyberattacks in the United States as retribution for harsh sanctions against Russia in the wake of President Vladimir Putin's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. In a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas Sunday evening obtained by CNN, 22 senators, led by Nevada Democrat Jacky Rosen and South Dakota Republican Mike Rounds, raised questions about America's readiness for Russian cyber and disinformation threats."Given Russia's history of disruptive cyber and disinformation activities, we are concerned that the United States may be targeted in retaliation for actions taken to impose costs on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine," the senators wrote.DHS did not immediately respond to CNN's request for comment.The Biden administration has been on alert for potential Russian criminal or state-backed cyberattacks against critical infrastructure targets in the US -- a posture that Washington assumed months ago but that has grown more acute since Russia invaded Ukraine.Read MoreSecretary of State Antony Blinken said earlier this month that the US is "very much on guard" for potential Russian cyberattacks in light of the war. While there have been several hacks of Ukrainian organizations, there have been no significant reports of the sort of high-impact cyberattacks on transportation or electric infrastructure that some have feared.Russia's cyber offensive against Ukraine has been limited so far. Experts are divided on whyIn their letter, the group of senators requested a briefing from Mayorkas about what the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) -- which falls under DHS -- is doing to proactively defend against Russian state-sponsored threats and what sectors might be targeted. They also asked whether a strategy is in place if critical infrastructure is breached and how CISA is "coordinating with international partners" on the matter.For months, CISA, the White House and agencies including the Treasury Department have held briefings with key sectors like banking and energy on Russian cyber capabilities and the possibility for retaliation in cyberspace. According to CISA's website, there are currently no specific or credible cyber threats to the US.Russian government-linked hackers have a long track record of infiltrating US government agencies and probing US critical infrastructure. Last year, the Biden administration attributed a successful 2020 cyber-espionage campaign that exploited SolarWinds software to breach several government agencies to Russia's foreign intelligence service, SVR. Russian-speaking ransomware groups have also disrupted US critical infrastructure, most notably last year during the days-long shutdown of Colonial Pipeline, a major fuel transporter for the East Coast.In February, President Joe Biden designated DHS as the lead federal agency to coordinate domestic preparedness and response efforts related to the Russia-Ukraine crisis.Last month, CNN reported that a senior FBI cyber official warned American businesses and local governments to be vigilant about potential ransomware attacks.
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Researchers on Thursday discovered a critical remotely exploitable vulnerability in the widely used command-line shell GNU Bourne Again Shell (Bash), dubbed "Shellshock" which affects most of the Linux distributions and servers worldwide, and may already have been exploited in the wild to take over Web servers as part of a botnet that is currently trying to infect other servers as well.
BOTNET ATTACK IN THE WILD
The bot was discovered by the security researcher with the Twitter handle @yinettesys, who reported it on Github and said it appeared to be remotely controlled by miscreants, which indicates that the vulnerability is already being used maliciously by the hackers.
The vulnerability (CVE-2014-6271), which came to light on Wednesday, affects versions 1.14 through 4.3 of GNU Bash and could become a dangerous threat to Linux/Unix and Apple users if the patches to BASH are not applied to the operating systems.
However, the patches for the vulnerability were released but there was some concern that the initial fix for the issue still left Bash vulnerable to attack, according to a new US CERT National Vulnerability Database entry. There is as of yet no official patch that completely addresses both vulnerabilities, including the second, which allows an attacker to overwrite files on the targeted system.
SHELLSHOCK vs THE INTERNET
Robert Graham of Errata Security observed that the major internet scan is already being used by the cyber criminals in order to locate vulnerable servers for cyber attack. During a scan, Graham found about 3,000 servers that were vulnerable "just on port 80" — the Internet Protocol port used for normal Web Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) requests.
The Internet scan broke after a short while, which means that there could be a wide numbers of other servers vulnerable to the attack.
"It's things like CGI scripts that are vulnerable, deep within a website (like CPanel's /cgi-sys/defaultwebpage.cgi)," Graham wrote in a blog post. "Getting just the root page is the thing least likely to be vulnerable. Spidering the site and testing well-known CGI scripts (like the CPanel one) would give a lot more results—at least 10x."
In addition, Graham said, "this thing is clearly wormable and can easily worm past firewalls and infect lots of systems. One key question is whether Mac OS X and iPhone DHCP service is vulnerable—once the worm gets behind a firewall and runs a hostile DHCP server, that would be 'game over' for large networks."
32 ORACLE PRODUCTS VULNERABLE
Oracle has also confirmed that over 32 of its products are affected by the "Shellshock" vulnerability including some expensive integrated hardware systems of the company. The company warned its users to wait a bit longer for the complete patch, by issuing a security alert regarding the Bash bug on Friday.
"Oracle is still investigating this issue and will provide fixes for affected products as soon as they have been fully tested and determined to provide effective mitigation against the vulnerability," the company said.
PATCH ISSUED, BUT INCOMPLETE
Patches were released from most of the Linux distributions, but Red Hat has updated an advisory warning that the patch is incomplete, the same issue that was also raised by infosec community on Twitter.
"Red Hat has become aware that the patches shipped for this issue are incomplete," said Red Hat security engineer Huzaifa Sidhpurwala. "An attacker can provide specially-crafted environment variables containing arbitrary commands that will be executed on vulnerable systems under certain conditions The new issue has been assigned CVE-2014-7169."
Although people are urged to apply the released patch to thwart most attacks on the affected systems, another patch is expected to release as soon as possible.
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FAQ : DNSChanger Trojan, Impact and Solutions
Two days before we (THN) Reported that FBI will shutdown Internet on 8th March, Title seems to be more Attention seeking , Why ? Well ! Our job is to aware you about the Internet Security. If we are looking for some extra attention from our Readers then its part of our small effort to make Internet more secure space for all.
Today we are going to Explain all about DNSChanger Trojan, its Impact on Internet users and the biggest challenge for FBI to resolve it, and How a non technical user can check and Restore its computer, Hope you will share this article with your Friends, Followers and On your Site to aware them about this Serial Internet Killer.
What is DNS (Domain Name System) ? is an Internet service that converts user-friendly domain names into the numerical Internet protocol (IP) addresses that computers use to talk to each other. When you enter a domain name, such as www.thehackernews.com, in your web browser address bar, your computer contacts DNS servers to determine the IP address for the website. Your computer then uses this IP address to locate and connect to the website. DNS servers are operated by your Internet service provider (ISP) and are included in your computer's network configuration. DNS and DNS Servers are a critical component of your computer's operating environment without them, you would not be able to access websites, send e-mail, or use any other Internet services.
What is DNSChanger ? a small file about 1.5 kilobytes , DNSChanger is a trojan that will change the infected system's Domain Name Server (DNS) settings, in order to divert traffic to unsolicited, and potentially illegal sites. This Trojan is designed to change the 'NameServer' Registry key value to a custom IP address. This IP address is usually encrypted in the body of a trojan.
When ? The DNSChanger malware was first discovered around 2007, and since this time has infected millions of computers, around 500,000 of them being in the U.S., and through these computers the criminals have reportedly pulled in around $14 million in stolen funds. The FBI has uncovered a network of rogue DNS servers and has taken steps to disable it.The FBI is also undertaking an effort to identify and notify victims who have been impacted by the DNSChanger malware.
Who are infected and Technical Info ? Both Windows and MacOS users are at risk for this infection because it exploits your browser, not your operating system.Here are some known hostile IP address pairs used by the DNS Changer malware:
64.28.176.1 - 64.28.191.254
67.210.0.1 - 67.210.15.254
77.67.83.1 - 77.67.83.254
85.255.112.1 - 85.255.127.254
93.188.160.1 - 93.188.167.254
213.109.64.1 - 213.109.79.254
Why its not easy Remove this Trojan ? One consequence of disabling the rogue DNS network is that victims who rely on the rogue DNS network for DNS service could lose access to DNS services, So This Process will start on March 8 by FBI.
Why 8th March 2012 ? After the take down of the DNSChange Botnet, in November 2011, the FBI obtained a court order allowing the FBI to set up a temporary DNSChanger Command & Control network. The court order expires on March 8th, 2012. Unless the FBI obtains a new court order allowing them to continue operating the temporary network, the network will be turned off. Resulting in millions of computers, world-wide, no longer being able to access the Internet.
How to check manually that your System is Infected or Not ? The best way to determine if your computer has been affected by DNSChanger is to have them evaluated by a computer professional.
Avira cooperated also with the German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) and published the tool also on the special website created to check if the DNS requests are made to the right places: www.DNS-OK.de. Besides the website, users can also OK DNS, the DNS-repair tool from the Avira website to download here.
After 8th March all computer will be Secured ? According to FBI, It is quite possible that computers infected with this malware may also be infected with other malware. The establishment of these clean DNS servers does not guarantee that the computers are safe from other malware. The main intent is to ensure users do not lose DNS service.
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Security researchers from Russian Internet giant Yandex have discovered a new piece of malware that is being used to target Linux and FreeBSD web servers in order to make them a part of the wide botnet, even without the need of any root privileges.
Researchers dubbed the malware as Mayhem, a nasty malware modular that includes a number of payloads to cause malicious things and targets to infect only those machines which are not updated with security patches or less likely to run security software.
So far, researchers have found over 1,400 Linux and FreeBSD servers around the world that have compromised by the malware, with potentially thousands more to come. Most of the compromised machines are located in the USA, Russia, Germany and Canada.
Three security experts, Andrej Kovalev, Konstantin Ostrashkevich and Evgeny Sidorov, who work at Russia-based Internet portal Yandex, discovered the malware targeting *nix servers. They were able to trace transmissions from the infected computers to the two command and control (C&C) servers.
"In the *nix world, autoupdate technologies aren't widely used, especially in comparison with desktops and smartphones. The vast majority of web masters and system administrators have to update their software manually and test that their infrastructure works correctly," the trio wrote in a technical report for Virus Bulletin.
"For ordinary websites, serious maintenance is quite expensive and often webmasters don't have an opportunity to do it. This means it is easy for hackers to find vulnerable web servers and to use such servers in their botnets."
Researchers say that this new type of malware can work under restricted privileges on the systems and has been created by keeping multiple functionality in mind. The malicious attack is conducted via a more sophisticated PHP script, that has a low detection rate with the antivirus engines available.
Communication of the system is established with the command and control servers, which can send the malware different instructions. As we mentioned above that Mayhem is a modular, its functions can be expanded through plugins and at the moment some eight plugins have been discovered, those are listed below:
rfiscan.so - Find websites that contain a remote file inclusion (RFI) vulnerability
wpenum.so - Enumerate users of WordPress sites
cmsurls.so - Identify user login pages in sites based on the WordPress CMS
bruteforce.so - Brute force passwords for sites based on the WordPress and Joomla CMSs
bruteforceng.so - Brute force passwords for almost any login page
ftpbrute.so - Brute force FTP accounts
crawlerng.so - Crawl web pages (by URL) and extract useful information
crawlerip.so - Crawl web pages (by IP) and extract useful information
In case of rfiscan.so, the malware spreads by finding servers hosting websites with a remote file inclusion (RFI) vulnerability that it checks using 'https://www.google.com/humans.txt' file. If the HTTP response contains the words 'we can shake', then the plugin decides that the website has a remote file inclusion vulnerability.
Once the malware exploits an RFI, or any other weakness mentioned above, and get installed, it will run a PHP script on a victim. The PHP script kills all '/usr/bin/host' processes, check for the system architecture and OS (whether Linux or FreeBSD), and then drops a malicious object identified as 'libworker.so'.
Meanwhile, the PHP script also defines a variable named 'AU', which includes the full URL of the script being executed. It also executes the shell script which is then being executed, then pings its Command-and-Control server.
The malware then creates a hidden file system, known as sd0, and downloads all the above eight plugins, none of which were detected by the VirusTotal malware scanning tool.
Mayhem was first detected in April 2014, and according to the trio, it is a continuation of the "Fort Disco" brute-force campaign that was unearthed by Arbor Networks in 2013.
The Yandex researchers warned people that there may be more plugins in circulation, based on information they discovered on the two detected Command-and-Control servers, including one which specifically exploits the systems that haven't patched the critical Heartbleed vulnerability in OpenSSL.
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A teenager has been arrested by the Canadian police in relation to the infamous malicious breach on the country's taxpayer system using one of the most critical internet flaws, Heartbleed.
Heartbleed bug, that made headlines over past two weeks and every websites around the world flooded with its articles. Every informational website, Media and Security researchers are talking about Heartbleed, probably the biggest Internet vulnerability in recent history.
According to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), a 19-year-old 'Stephen Arthuro Solis-Reyes' of London, Ontario, is charged with the unauthorized access of the computer and criminal mischief in relation to the data breach of taxpayer's private information from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) website.
"The RCMP treated this breach of security as a high priority case and mobilized the necessary resources to resolve the matter as quickly as possible," Assistant Commissioner Gilles Michaud said in a statement.
"Investigators from National Division, along with our counterparts in 'Ontario' Division have been working tirelessly over the last four days analyzing data, following leads, conducting interviews, obtaining and executing legal authorizations and liaising with our partners," he added.
After the public disclosure of Heartbleed bug on April 9, Solis-Reyes allegedly exploited this most critical security vulnerability, present in the OpenSSL of the CRA servers, to extract the private and sensitive information, including the social insurance numbers from the company's system, before the computers were patched.
Heartbleed is a critical bug in the OpenSSL's implementation of the TLS/DTLS heartbeat extension that allows attackers to read portions of the affected server's memory, potentially revealing users data, that the server did not intend to reveal.
Though there were allegations on the U.S. intelligence agency NSA of using the Heartbleed vulnerabilities from years to gather confidential information. But, this is the first known incident of hacker exploiting the critical internet Heartbleed bug to steal and compromise the data from the servers which are running on an affected OpenSSL version.
Exploiting the Heartbleed bug itself rarely leaves any traces, unless the attacker is not sending millions of heartbeats continuously from his own IP addresses. "The fact that they were able to trace it back to someone implies that it is not the work of organized crime or a professional hacker. It would be someone of very low skill." said Mark Nunnikhoven, Trend Micro.
Solis-Reyes was arrested at his residence without incident on April 15 and is scheduled to appear in court in Ottawa on July 17, 2014, RCMP reported. The police also seized computer equipment from his residence, while the investigation is ongoing.
More on HeartBleed:
HeartBleed Bug Explained - 10 Most Frequently Asked Questions
How Heartbleed Bug Exposes Your Passwords to Hackers
German Developer responsible for HeartBleed Bug in OpenSSL
How to Protect yourself from the 'Heartbleed' Bug
Heartbleed - OpenSSL Zero-day Bug leaves Millions of websites Vulnerable
NSA denies Report that Agency knew and exploited Heartbleed Vulnerability
Billions of Smartphone Users affected by Heartbleed Vulnerability
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Story highlightsWADA chief issues firm warning over hackingCraig Reedie says WADA taking serious action (CNN)The head of the World-Anti-Doping Agency has warned Russia that the hacking of athletes medical records could postpone the nation's attempt to return to the world stage.WADA president Craig Reedie told CNN Thursday that the hacking of confidential files by the cyber criminal group "Fancy Bear" was clearly a retaliatory attack after 118 of Russia's athletes were banned from competing at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games following revelations of "state-sponsored" doping.Follow @cnnsport
WADA recommended banning all Russian athletes from the Olympics, after an independent report said the country operated a state-sponsored doping program during the 2014 Sochi Winter Games. Russian officials and athletes likened the move to Cold War era conflicts.And while Reedie remains adamant there has been no involvement from the Russian government, he says the hack could have serious consequences for the country's bid to re-enter the world of athletics.Craig Reedie is the head of the World Anti-Doping Agency."I would be very surprised if the Russian government was directly involved," said Reedie.Read More"However, the information that we have, which I'm pretty certain is authoritative, is that the people who are doing this have connections to Russia.Read: Hackers steal medical data of US stars"I would hope that the appeals I have made to my colleagues and officials in Russia will bring about some desired results because this continued breach of confidentiality on athletes' personal records is entirely unwelcome."It is dangerous, it breaches every bit of medical code that I would ever know, and is unhelpful if Russia is making efforts to have its anti-doping system declared compliant."Read: Russian hackers release secret data of 25 more Olympic athletesRussian sports minister Vitaly Mutko denied accusations of governmental interference when he spoke to reporters in Athens, Wednesday."How can one possibly prove that the hackers were from Russia?" Mutko said, according to state-run Tass news agency. Serena and Venus Williams both had their medical records hacked."Nowadays, Russia is blamed for everything and it seems to be in the trend."I want to say that we have no such information and we are also deeply concerned since the hacked documents could have also contained information on Russian athletes and it could be made public as well."JUST WATCHEDRussia hackers steal medical data of Rio athletesReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHRussia hackers steal medical data of Rio athletes 02:20The hack, which revealed therapeutic exemption use (TUE) details of stars such as American four-time Olympic gold medallist Simone Biles as well as tennis sisters Venus and Serena Williams, has led to criticism of WADA's security systems. A TUE allows an athlete to use, for therapeutic purposes only, an otherwise prohibited substance or method.They're often used because athletes may have illnesses or conditions which means they need to take certain medications.Simone Biles was one of the stars at Rio 2016.If the medication which is needed is listed as a prohibited substance, a TUE could be given to allow the athlete to use the medication without breaking any doping laws.Exemptions, which are only granted if WADA determines no unfair advantage is given to the athlete, can be applied for through the athletes' national anti-doping agency or international federation.The entire process is supposed to be kept confidential to maintain the athlete's right to privacy.Reedie, who revealed that the organization has a budget of $30 million to spend on its security, says WADA will meet in Switzerland on Tuesday to discuss what should be done to safeguard its system in the future.JUST WATCHEDRussia banned from Paralympic Games after appeal deniedReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHRussia banned from Paralympic Games after appeal denied 01:22"We have been in business now and moved mountains -- people should understand that -- over the past 17 years," he said."What we need to do is make sure our own processes are up to date and are efficient for the world in 2016 instead of 1999 and we will do that."Next week we're looking at whether the code can be changed to cover institutionalized corruption. We are looking at whether we should have more powers when we declare people non-compliant. Photos: Sebastian Coe says athetics "is about a great deal more than doping," adding: "We've chased some of the biggest names out of the sport, and that doesn't come without a cost."Hide Caption 1 of 9 Photos: But track and field athletics has come under scrutiny after fresh claims of widespread doping at major championships.Hide Caption 2 of 9 Photos: The Sunday Times and German broadcaster ARD have accused the International Association of Athletic Federations (IAAF) of failing to investigate hundreds of "suspicious" drug tests between 2001 and 2012.Hide Caption 3 of 9 Photos: The reports said 800 of the 12,000 blood tests involving 5,000 athletes were suspicious.Hide Caption 4 of 9 Photos: The IAAF has denied athletics is suffering a similar crisis to cycling's past history of doping when that sport was bedeviled by extensive drug-taking and accusations of top-level cover-ups. Hide Caption 5 of 9 Photos: Coe -- twice Olympic 1,500 meter champion -- insists the organization has led the way on out-of-competition independent testing.Hide Caption 6 of 9 Photos: Former pole vaulter Sergey Bubka, who is standing against Coe in August to become the next IAAF president, says athletics "must be more proactive and even more transparent in our aggressive pursuit of a zero tolerance policy against doping cheats." Hide Caption 7 of 9 Photos: The head of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Thomas Bach has promised the organization will pursue a policy of "zero tolerance" if allegations of widespread doping by track and field athletes at the Olympics are proven.Hide Caption 8 of 9 Photos: This isn't the first time that athletics has faced questions over doping. Ben Johnson stunned the world by taking 100m gold in a record time in South Korea at the 1988 Olympics, but the Canadian left the Olympic movement in turmoil when he later tested positive for a banned substance.Hide Caption 9 of 9"We're looking at our own governance. We're taking this seriously, It's easy to criticize, it's easy to look back, we now have to look forward and that's precisely what we're doing."
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Security researchers have been warning about cybercriminals who have made over 20 million dollars in just past few months by hijacking insecurely configured Ethereum nodes exposed on the Internet.
Qihoo 360 Netlab in March tweeted about a group of cybercriminals who were scanning the Internet for port 8545 to find insecure geth clients running Ethereum nodes and, at that time, stole 3.96234 units of Ethereum cryptocurrency (Ether).
However, researchers now noticed that another cybercriminal group have managed to steal a total 38,642 Ether, worth more than $20,500,000 at the time of writing, in past few months by hijacking Ethereum wallets of users who had opened their JSON-RPC port 8545 to the outside world.
Geth is one of the most popular clients for running Ethereum node and enabling JSON-RPC interface on it allows users to remotely access the Ethereum blockchain and node functionalities, including the ability to send transactions from any account which has been unlocked before sending a transaction and will stay unlocked for the entire session.
Here's the attackers' Ethereum account address, where all the stolen funds have been collected:
0x957cD4Ff9b3894FC78b5134A8DC72b032fFbC464
By simply searching this address on the Internet, we found dozens of forums and websites where users have posted details of similar incidents happened with them, describing about the same account address hackers used to stole their funds from the insecurely configured Ethereum nodes.
According to an advisory issued by Ethereum Project three years ago, leaving the JSON-RPC interface on an internet-accessible machine without a firewall policy opens up your cryptocurrency wallet to theft "by anybody who knows your [wallet] address in combination with your IP."
NetLab researchers warned that not only the above-mentioned cybercriminal group but other attackers are also actively scanning the Internet for insecure JSON-RPC interface to steal funds from cryptocurrency wallets.
"If you have honeypot running on port 8545, you should be able to see the requests in the payload. Which has the wallet addresses. And there are quite a few ips scanning heavily on this port now," 360 Netlab tweeted.
Users who have implemented Ethereum nodes are advised only to allow connections to the geth client originating from the local computer, or to implement user-authorization if remote RPC connections need to be enabled.
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Story highlightsBayern Munich beat Frankfurt 5-0 to extend 100% start to the Bundesliga season to eight gamesSchalke beat Borussia Dortmund to consolidate third place in table; Dortmund now 12 points off leadFrankfurt victory leaves them five points adrift of leaders BayernBayern Munich cruised to a 5-0 win at Dusseldorf on Saturday to set a new Bundesliga record for most consecutive wins at the start of the season. Two goals from Thomas Muller and one each for Croatia's Mario Mandzukic, Brazil's Luiz Gustavo and Rafina ensured Bayern made it eight wins from eight -- one better than the previous record they held jointly with Mainz, who racked up seven straight wins two seasons ago.Frankfurt continued their chase of the league leaders by beating Hanover 3-1 to register their sixth win of the season.Goals from Algeria midfielder Karim Matmour and German defender Sebastian Jung put Frankfurt 2-0 up inside the opening 20 minutes before Hanover pulled one back through Mohammed Abdellaoue two minutes before the break. But an Alexander Meier header eight minutes from the end means Frankfurt are now five points behind Bayern. Schalke consolidated third place with a 2-1 win at fourth-placed Borussia Dortmund. A volley from Dutch midfielder Ibrahim Afellay put the visitors ahead in the 14th minute before Marco Hoeger doubled the lead three minutes into the second half.Polish striker Robert Lewandowski got one back for Jurgen Klopp's side seven minutes later but an equalizer never materialized. Schalke are now seven points adrift of Bayern while Dortmund now trail the leaders by 12. In Saturday's other games, Freiburg beat Wolfsburg 2-0 while Bayer Leverkusen drew 2-2 with Mainz.
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A recently discovered hole in the security of the Bourne-Again Shell (bash) has the majority of Unix/Linux (including OS X) admins sweating bullets. You should be, too--attackers have already developed exploits to unleash on unpatched web servers, network services and daemons that use shell scripts with environment variables (this can include network equipment, industrial devices, etc.)
Jaime Blasco, AlienVault Labs Director, gives a good explanation of the exploit in this blog post. And, the video below gives you a quick overview of how AlienVault Unified Security Management (USM) can detect malicious traffic on your network trying to locate and exploit this vulnerability.
Basically, this vulnerability allows an attacker to execute shell commands on a server due to an issue in how bash interprets environment variables (such as "cookie", "host", "referrer"). Exploiting this allows an attacker to run shell commands directly. Once they have access to run shell commands, they own the server.
What can I do?
If you're already sanitizing inputs across your web applications to protect against SQL injection and cross-site scripting, you're on the right track. This will give you at least a basic defense.
While CGI is still around on most sites, it is usually restricted to little bits of code that have been around for years. These bits of code have probably not updated under the rule-of-thumb "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."
Well – guess what? It's broke. Fix it. It's time to find an alternative. But, in the mean time, it's a good idea to disable any CGI that calls on the shell.
Some have recommended using something other than bash in your applications (Dash, Fish, Zsh, Csh, etc) but be sure to put some thought and careful planning into that instead of a knee-jerk 'rip and replace'. Certain shells might work differently or even be missing some of the bash functionality that your applications rely on, rendering them inoperable.
The real fix is going to be patching of bash itself, either from the developers of the distribution you use, or, (if you're savvy) via your own compiled code. Until then, the steps mentioned above are good first steps to defending yourself.
How can AlienVault help?
AlienVault Unified Security Management (USM) provides asset discovery, vulnerability assessment, threat detection (IDS), behavioral monitoring and SIEM in a single console, giving you everything you need to detect vulnerabilities like Bash, and attempted exploits.
With AlienVault USM you can:
Discover and inventory your network assets automatically
Scan for thousands of vulnerabilities, including Bash
Detect attacks and activity with known malicious hosts
Prioritize risks with correlated vulnerability and threat data
Benefit from threat intelligence updates developed by security experts at AlienVault Labs
Within 24 hours of the discovery of the Bash vulnerability, the AlienVault Labs team pushed updated network signatures and correlation directives to the USM platform, enabling users to detect the vulnerability in their environment, and detect attackers attempting to exploit it.
Learn more about AlienVault USM:
Download a free 30-day trial
Watch a demo on-demand
Play with USM in our product sandbox (no download required)
Attend our webcast "The Bash Vulnerability: Practical Steps to Protect your Environment"
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Security researchers revealed that series of "Watering Hole" has been conducted exploiting a IE8 zero-day vulnerability to target U.S. Government experts working on nuclear weapons research.
The news is not surprising but it is very concerning, the principal targets of the attacks are various groups of research such as the components of U.S. Department of Labor and the U.S. Department of Energy, the news has been confirmed by principal security firms and by Microsoft corporate.
The flaw has been used in a series of "watering hole" attacks, let's remind that "Watering Hole" is a technique of attack realized compromising legitimate websites using a "drive-by" exploit. The attackers restrict their audience to a individuals interested to specific content proposed by targeted website, in this way when the victim visits the page a backdoor Trojan is installed on his computer.
The website compromised to exploit the IE8 zero-day is the Dept. of Energy's Site Exposure Matrices (SEM) website, the site provides information on "nuclear-related illnesses" linked to Dept. of Energy facilities of employees who are experiencing health problems as a result of their professional activities.
Security community supposes that behind the exploits of IE8 zero-day flaw there is a group of Chinese hackers known as "DeepPanda" that hijacked visitors to a compromised website to deploy Poison Ivy Trojan through the execution of a "drive-by download exploit".
Security firm FireEye revealed that the new IE8 zero-day exploit is able to work against Internet Explorer 8 for all versions of Windows XP and above, including Windows Server 2003, 2008 and R2.
"This particular exploit checks for OS version, and only runs on Windows XP. We are able to reproduce the code execution and confirm it's a working zero-day exploit against IE8. During our research we also found the exploit constructs a ROP chain on non-ASLRed msvcrt.dll, and we verified it could also work against IE8 on Windows 7. So we believe there should be some other exploits targeting IE8 on Windows 7." FireEye post states.
At the moment there isn't information on the information stolen but it is clear that the campaign discovered is related to a cyber espionage activity due the numerous classified documents managed by targeted departments.
Microsoft issued a security advisory on Friday announcing its investigation on the event and confirming it as a "remote code execution vulnerability.", Microsoft confirmed on Friday that the IE8 zero-day vulnerability exists in Internet Explorer 8 for all versions of Windows XP and above are affected, including Windows Server 2003, 2008 and R2.
Microsoft noted that IE6 users on Windows XP, IE7, IE9, and IE10 users on Windows 8 and Surface tablets, are not affected by the security flaw.
Other precious suggestions provided by the advisory are:
Mitigating Factors:
By default, Internet Explorer on Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, and Windows Server 2008 R2 runs in a restricted mode that is known as Enhanced Security Configuration. This mode mitigates this vulnerability.
By default, all supported versions of Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Outlook Express, and Windows Mail open HTML email messages in the Restricted sites zone. The Restricted sites zone, which disables script and ActiveX controls, helps reduce the risk of an attacker being able to use this vulnerability to execute malicious code. If a user clicks a link in an email message, the user could still be vulnerable to exploitation of this vulnerability through the web-based attack scenario.
An attacker who successfully exploited this vulnerability could gain the same user rights as the current user. Users whose accounts are configured to have fewer user rights on the system could be less impacted than users who operate with administrative user rights.
In a web-based attack scenario, an attacker could host a website that contains a webpage that is used to exploit this vulnerability. In addition, compromised websites and websites that accept or host user-provided content or advertisements could contain specially crafted content that could exploit this vulnerability. In all cases, however, an attacker would have no way to force users to visit these websites. Instead, an attacker would have to convince users to visit the website, typically by getting them to click a link in an email message or Instant Messenger message that takes users to the attacker's website.
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