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Go Ask Your Dad is parenting advice with a philosophical bent as one dad explores what we want out of life, for ourselves and our children, through useful paradigms and best practices. (CNN)With so many destinations of pleasure denied to us now, we may be developing a deeper appreciation of nature, wherever we can get them. And we're lucky that getting outside, even while requiring social distancing, is still available to us during this pandemic.Why are Norwegians so happy? In a word: 'koselig'On a recent hike through the woods, I explained to my daughters how we were doing three things that were simultaneously boosting our happiness at that moment.First, we were getting exercise, a proven mood booster. Second, we were spending quality time with loved ones, long associated with life happiness in surveys. And third, we were in nature. A walk in the woods is a trifecta of joy, and all it took was making a modest effort.Read MoreOur local forays into nature always put us in a better head space, even when it's rainy or muddy, even when the kids get pooped, and even when they complain in advance of going. Once we are on the trail a switch is flipped. It is unfiltered adventure, discovery, connection and beauty. We are demonstratively happier.Scientifically soResearch that is more scientific than my small experiment, backs up the mood I consistently recorded. My colleague Kristen Rogers did some exploring of her own and made discoveries about where the nature and happiness trails meet.Much of the research on how engaging with nature impacts eco-friendly behaviors and happiness has been focused on adults. But in a study published Wednesday in the journal Frontiers in Psychology, researchers examined the impact of a group of children's "connectedness to nature" on their sustainable behaviors and happiness. Babies are willing to give up food, showing altruism begins in infancy, study saysThis kinship with nature was defined by researchers as a "characteristic of human beings that refers to thinking and feeling emotionally connected with all the elements of the natural environment, with feeling happier as a consequence."In a classroom in a Mexican city, nearly 300 children between ages of 9 and 12 responded to a questionnaire that measured their link to nature, eco-friendly behaviors and happiness. The researchers found children who felt connected to nature -- feeling pleasure when seeing wildflowers and animals, hearing sounds of nature -- engaged in altruism, or actions that helped other people. These children actively cared for the environment by recycling, reusing objects and saving water. They were also more likely to say they believed in equality among sexes, races and socioeconomic conditions. Finally, these children scored high on a happiness scale, too.
Go Ask Your Dad is parenting advice with a philosophical bent as one dad explores what we want out of life, for ourselves and our children, through useful paradigms and best practices. It considers old problems in new ways, and new problems that previous generations didn't face.
Previous research has found such behaviors are correlated with conduct that aids in caring for the planet during a time of environmental crises, which sets up these children to be future custodians of nature, the researchers suggested."They are future consumers of products, entrepreneurs, decision-makers, workers, and depending on the environmental education received, their connection with nature, environmental awareness and environmental values are the future of the environment, too," said Dr. Laura Barrera-Hernández, author of the study and professor at the Instituto Tecnológico de Sonora in Mexico."Children need role models ... who can gently guide them to nature with excitement, optimism and an attitude of a lifelong learner," said Miyuki Maruping, a gardening teacher at the Waldorf School of Atlanta, who wasn't involved in the research. Waldorf education emphasizes arts, imagination, movement and nature. "Forest kindergartens," offered at various locations around the country, provide gardening, nature walks and hikes and other outside opportunities for three hours a day, rain or shine. "We don't have to be experts in environmental science or nature studies. What's more important is that we spend time together with children by exploring curiosity in a fun and safe environment," Maruping said. Spending time in nature boosts health, study finds And it's not just kids. A 2015 study showed that people who take walks in nature report less repetitive negative thoughts. And a government health service in Scotland is so convinced of the mental and physical health benefits of nature it is encouraging doctors to give "nature prescriptions" to help treat high blood pressure, anxiety and depression. "Many studies are showing that even passive interactions with nature give back to us by healing us of problems with stress, anxiety and helping us to focus better," said Dr. Tina Cade, a professor of horticulture at Texas State University, who wasn't involved in the research. "Other studies have shown that active participation in gardens can help children eat better, get more exercise, have better attitudes toward school and interpersonal relationships," Cade said.Nature is the answerWhen I [David] was in college I made my first pilgrimage to Walden Pond. It's the famous body of water in Concord, Massachusetts surrounded by woods, where Henry David Thoreau lived in deliberate communion with nature and wrote a book about it titled "Walden."Walden, the anti-video game video gameThoreau was part of an intellectual Transcendentalist movement in the early to mid-1800s. The group, which included Ralph Waldo Emerson and Louisa May Alcott's father, Bronson, espoused a progressive political agenda that included environmental conservation and raised nature to a spiritual plane. For the Transcendentalists, the meaning and power of trees, water and wind "transcended" the mere senses. Getting in touch with the natural environment is a "tonic" that will cure what ails your soul, they believed. Our souls are just parts of Nature's greater "Oversoul." Get CNN Health's weekly newsletter Sign up here to get The Results Are In with Dr. Sanjay Gupta every Tuesday from the CNN Health team.By deliberately bringing our daughters into nature, my wife and I are connecting them to something greater than the individual elements of the outdoors, something deeper than the average afternoon experience. In nature, we're giving them answers to the fundamental questions of reality. And that makes me happy.
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A Serious vulnerability has been discovered in the Web browser installed by default on a large number (Approximately 70%) of Android devices, that could allow an attacker to hijack users' open websites, and there is now a Metasploit module available to easily exploit this dangerous flaw.
The exploit targets vulnerability (CVE-2014-6041) in Android versions 4.2.1 and all older versions and was first disclosed right at the start of September by an independent security researcher Rafay Baloch, but there has not been much public discussion on it.
The Android bug has been called a "privacy disaster" by Tod Beardsley, a developer for the Metasploit security toolkit, and in order to explain you why, he has promised to post a video that is "sufficiently shocking."
"By malforming a javascript: URL handler with a prepended null byte, the AOSP, or Android Open Source Platform (AOSP) Browser) fails to enforce the Same-Origin Policy (SOP) browser security control," Tod Beardsley of Rapid7 said in a blog post.
"What this means is any arbitrary website - say, one controlled by a spammer or a spy - can peek into the contents of any other web page," Beardsley said. "[If] you went to an attackers site while you had your webmail open in another window, the attacker could scrape your email data and see what your browser sees."
"Worse, he could snag a copy of your session cookie and hijack your session completely, and read and write webmail on your behalf."
Baloch also found the AOSP browser installed on Android 4.2.1 is vulnerable to Same Origin Policy (SOP) bypass that allows one website to steal data from another. He then tested his findings on numerous devices, including Qmobile Noir, Sony Xperia, Samsung Galaxy S3, HTC Wildfire and Motorola Razr and found that it works on all.
But, anyone running the latest release, Android 4.4, is not affected, which means that as many as 75 per cent of Android devices and millions of Android users are vulnerable to the attack, according to Google's own statistics.
Baloch explained that an SOP bypass occurs when one website makes it way to access the properties, such as cookies, location, response etc, of the other site. "Due to the nature of the issue and potential impact, browsers have very strict model pertaining it and a SOP bypass is rarely found in modern browsers. However, they are found once in a while," Baloch said in a blog post.
As a responsible security researcher, Baloch reported the issue to the Google and they responded positively by assuring him that they are working on a "suitable fix." But when it came to reward this bug hunter, they replied "We are unable to reproduce this issue though. Its possible that your OEM has modified the browser in a manner that has created this issue," said Josh Armour of Android Security team.
"Android does not currently have a Vulnerability Rewards Program. As far as publicly crediting for the vulnerability we have started to maintain a list of acknowledgements here. Given that this was published before we had a chance to provide patches, this specific report would not qualify."
The problem is that all the versions except Android 4.4 are affected by this issue and a large number of users still are on the older versions. Worst is the creation of a module for the Metasploit penetration testing platform, which would make the exploitation of the vulnerability much easier.
It all resides in the BROWSER of the Android devices, which can't be uninstalled because it's usually part of the operating system in-build feature. So, in order to protect yourself, just Disable the BROWSER from your Android devices by going to Settings > Apps > All and looking for its icon. By opening it, you'll find a DISABLE button, Select it and disable the Browser.
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Story highlightsBottas to partner Hamilton at MercedesSeeking to become 4th Finnish champion (CNN)After replacing world champion Nico Rosberg at all-conquering F1 team Mercedes, Valtteri Bottas now has the chance to fulfill his undoubted talent.The Finn's four seasons at Williams yielded nine podium finishes, but no wins, in 77 starts -- though that could (and should) change this year. With the fastest and most reliable car on the F1 grid, Bottas is expected to push his new teammate, three-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, throughout the 20-race calendar. JUST WATCHEDIce fishing with the Flying FinnReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHIce fishing with the Flying Finn 04:11JUST WATCHEDAmazing views of Valtteri Bottas' childhood homeReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHAmazing views of Valtteri Bottas' childhood home 00:34"I feel like I have plenty to prove, not much to lose ... more to win -- I can't wait," Bottas told CNN's The Circuit.Watch the video above to learn more about the 27-year-old, who reveals his driver idol, favorite circuit, first car -- and a hidden talent.Read MoreFinns in Formula OneIf Bottas can clinch his first world title this year, he will become the fourth driver from Finland after Keke Rosberg (1982), Mika Hakkinen (1998, 1999) and Kimi Raikkonen (2007) to do so -- an incredible feat for a country of 5.5 million people.Hakkinen has served as both hero and mentor -- the former McLaren star helped steer Bottas' career through the junior ranks. Visit cnn.com/motorsport for more news and videosBottas has impressed with his pace at preseason testing in Barcelona ahead of the season's opening race in Australia on March 26.
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Story highlightsLions secure historic victory in New ZealandAll Blacks' Sonny Bill Williams red cardedNew Zealand's first home defeat since 2009 (CNN)Not since 2009 had New Zealand lost a rugby game on home soil; not since 2003 had the mighty All Blacks been beaten at Wellington's Westpac Stadium.Follow @cnnsport
But the British and Irish Lions, a composite team made up of the best players from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, have put an end to that 47-match reign.The All Blacks were reduced to fourteen men after Sonny Bill Williams was red carded for a shoulder charge in the first half. But the world's No. 1 ranked side appeared to be in control in rainy conditions after Beauden Barrett had kicked his side into an 18-9 lead with 20 minutes left to play.But a Taulupe Faletau try broke the deadlock and brought the Lions within touching distance of a historic victory, before a darting Conor Murray added to the visitors' total to draw the scores level at 21 points apiece.READ: The Englishman who swapped rugby for the NFLRead MoreThis is how it feels to level up a #NZLvBIL series...#LionsNZ2017 #AllForOne pic.twitter.com/Ft50JbmD98— British&Irish Lions (@lionsofficial) July 1, 2017
An Owen Farrell penalty in the final minutes of the contest secured an historic victory to level the series after New Zealand won the first test in Auckland.The two sides meet in Auckland again next week to decide the series. "It's only half a job done. One apiece now, effectively we've only played two halves," Lions captain Sam Warbuton, who returned to the starting lineup for this week's encounter, told Sky Sports."It's great we've got it to 1-1, we want to take it to a decider at Eden Park."There's still plenty to work on, we gave away far too many penalties in the second half. We've got to up it again next week."JUST WATCHEDThe mystical side of New Zealand rugbyReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHThe mystical side of New Zealand rugby 02:20The game's biggest talking point came after 25 minutes when All Blacks' center Sonny Bill Williams was red carded for a shoulder change on Anthony Watson -- the first New Zealand player to be sent off in 50 years. READ: How a Lions fan ended up staying at an All Black's houseDown to fourteen men, the home side managed to stay in the game as an error-strewn first half ended 9-9.All Blacks' fly-half Beauden Barrett missed three kicks in testing conditions, and that, along with Williams red card, proved costly for the hosts, allowing the Lions to stay within touching distance.The Lions turned on the pressure in the final quarter, and tries from Faletau and Murray came either side of a Barrett penalty.Visit cnn.com/rugby for more news and videosIn the closing stages, Farrell stepped up and kicked the visitors into an historic lead, putting a dagger in the heart of the All Blacks' eight-year unbeaten run at home.
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Are you using LibreOffice?
You should be extra careful about what document files you open using the LibreOffice software over the next few days.
That's because LibreOffice contains a severe unpatched code execution vulnerability that could sneak malware into your system as soon as you open a maliciously-crafted document file.
LibreOffice is one of the most popular and open source alternatives to Microsoft Office suite and is available for Windows, Linux and macOS systems.
Earlier this month, LibreOffice released the latest version 6.2.5 of its software that addresses two severe vulnerabilities (CVE-2019-9848 and CVE-2019-9849), but the patch for the former has now been bypassed, security researcher Alex Inführ claims.
Though Inführ has not yet disclosed details of the technique that allowed him to bypass the patch, the impact of this vulnerability remains the same, as explained below.
1.) CVE-2019-9848: This vulnerability, which still exists in the latest version, resides in LibreLogo, a programmable turtle vector graphics script that ships by default with LibreOffice.
LibreLogo allows users to specify pre-installed scripts in a document that can be executed on various events such as mouse-over.
Discovered by Nils Emmerich, the flaw could allow an attacker to craft a malicious document that can silently execute arbitrary python commands without displaying any warning to a targeted user.
"The big problem here is that the code is not translated well and just supplying python code as the script code often results in the same code after translation," Emmerich said.
"Using forms and OnFocus event, it is even possible to get code execution when the document is opened, without the need for a mouse-over event."
Emmerich also released a proof-of-concept for this attack on his blog post.
2.) CVE-2019-9849: This vulnerability, which you can fix by installing the latest available update, could allow the inclusion of remote arbitrary content within a document even when 'stealth mode' is enabled.
The stealth mode is not enabled by default, but users can activate it to instruct documents retrieve remote resources only from trusted locations.
How to Protect Your System
Inführ has already notified LibreOffice team of the bypass issue, but until the team releases a patch to fix the bypass, users are recommended to update or reinstall the software without macros or at least without LibreLogo component, by following the below-mentioned steps.
Open the setup to start the installation
Select "Custom" installation
Expand "Optional Components"
Click on "LibreLogo" and select "This Feature Will Not Be Available"
Click Next and then Install the software
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What a horrible start the holiday season in U.S. Over Thanksgiving weekend, Sony Pictures Entertainment suffered a massive data breach as "Guardians of Peace" hacked-into Sony Pictures' computer system that brought the studio's network to a screeching halt.
Following the hack, hackers leaked five unreleased Sony movies to Torrent file-sharing website during Black Friday. It's still not clear whether both the incident back to back with Sony Pictures belongs to same group of hackers or not, but here's what you need to know about the breach:
1. FBI MALWARE WARNING AFTER SONY PICTURES HACK
The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) warned businesses that cyber criminals have used malicious software to launch destructive cyber-attacks in the United States, following the last week's massive data breach at Sony Pictures Entertainment, in which four unreleased films were stolen and pirate-shared.
In a five-page confidential 'flash' warning, FBI recommended users to strengthen the protection of their information systems and limit access to databases. But when asked if the same malicious software had been used against the Sony Pictures hack, FBI declined to comment.
This new "destructive" malware has capability to overwrite a victim host's master boot record and all data files. "The overwriting of the data files will make it extremely difficult and costly, if not impossible, to recover the data using standard forensic methods," according to Reuters who independently obtained the report.
2. IS NORTH KOREA BEHIND THE CYBER ATTACK ON SONY PICTURES ?
As we reported earlier, Sony Pictures is investigating the possibility that hackers working on behalf of North Korea were behind the hacking incident.
Sony hack is the payback for upcoming Kim Jong assassination comedy film. It is because the hack comes just a month before the scheduled release of Sony's upcoming comedy "The Interview," a comedy about two journalists who are recruited by the CIA to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
The film became a source of international controversy, and the Pyongyang government denounced the film as "undisguised sponsoring of terrorism, as well as an Act of War" in a letter to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in June.
But pointing finger towards North Korea without any strong evidence would be wrong. So, we still won't confirm whether its cyber war by North Korea or some other unknown, sophisticated hacker.
3. FIVE MOVIE LEAKED LINKED TO SONY PICTURES
Following the last weeks cyber-attack on Sony Pictures Entertainment, high-quality versions of five newest films – Annie, Fury, Still Alice, Mr. Turner and To Write Love on Her Arms – distributed by Sony Pictures leaked online during Black Friday.
Four of the leaked films have yet to hit the big screen. The remake of the 1982 released "Annie" is Sony's next big film, schedule to hit theaters on Dec. 19 with new stars Quvenzhané Wallis, Cameron Diaz and Jamie Foxx.
Two other new films, "Mr. Turner" and "Still Alice" are also considered possible Oscar contenders for their lead actors Timothy Spall and Julianne Moore.
4. SONY HIRED FIREEYE FOR INVESTIGATION
Sony Pictures Entertainment has hired Mandiant incident response team of FireEye Inc to help clean-up the damage caused by the huge cyber attack on its network, which forced its employees to put pen to paper over the last few weeks.
In addition to the FireEye, FBI is also investigating the matter and is looking into the devastating leak of four of its upcoming movies, although it has not been confirmed that the leak of all the films came from the same data breach.
Mandiant is a well-known security incident response team of FireEye which deals in forensic analysis, repairs and network restoration. Mandiant is the same team that helped in the catastrophic security breach experienced by one of the world's largest retailer Target in 2013.
5. SONY PICTURES HACK IS NOT THE COMPANY'S FIRST TIME HACK
In August, Sony's PlayStation Network was completely taken down by a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack, a common technique used by hackers to overwhelm a system with traffic and make the network temporarily inaccessible to users.
The gaming network also suffered a more severe hack in 2011, which led to the exposure of 77 million PlayStation and Qriocity accounts along with 25 million Sony Online Entertainment accounts, bringing the total to more than 100 million in one of the largest data breaches ever. The hack cost Sony 14 billion yen ($172 million), and it took the networks -- for downloading and playing games, movies, and music -- offline for about a month before bringing them back up.
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Another day, another bad news for Bitcoin users.
A leading Bitcoin information site is warning users that an upcoming version of the Blockchain consolidation software and Bitcoin wallets could most likely be targeted by "state-sponsored attackers."
Recently, one of the world's most popular cryptocurrency exchanges, Bitfinex, suffered a major hack that resulted in a loss of around $72 Million worth of Bitcoins.
Now, Bitcoin.org, the website that hosts downloads for Bitcoin Core, posted a message on its website on Wednesday warning users that the next version of the Bitcoin Core wallet, one of the most popular bitcoin wallets used to store bitcoins, might be replaced with a malicious version of the software offered by government-backed hackers.
Specifically, Chinese bitcoin users and services are encouraged to be vigilant "due to the origin of the attackers."
Bitcoin.org doesn't believe it has sufficient resources to defend against the attack. However, the website did not reveal the name of the country planning the attack.
The Warning Message from the Bitcoin.org site reads:
"Bitcoin.org has reason to suspect that the binaries for the upcoming Bitcoin Core release will likely be targeted by state-sponsored attackers. As a website, Bitcoin.org does not have the necessary technical resources to guarantee that we can defend ourselves from attackers of this calibre. We ask the Bitcoin community, and in particular the Chinese Bitcoin community to be extra vigilant when downloading binaries from our website."
"In such a situation, not being careful before you download [the software] could cause you to lose all your coins. This malicious software might also cause your computer to participate in attacks against the Bitcoin network."
Also Read: Bitcoin Exchange Offers $3.5 Million Reward for Information of Stolen Bitcoins.
In such cases, it is likely that hackers will try to hijack and replace the official binary files used to run Bitcoin software on mining pools, either:
By compromising the Bitcoin.org official site
By conducting a man-in-the-middle attack to fake a cryptographic certificate that would allow hackers to intercept victim's encrypted HTTPS connection and replace the legitimate download with a malicious one, tricking users into installing a malicious version of the Bitcoin software.
However, Bitcoin Core developer Eric Lombrozo told The Reg that "there's absolutely nothing in the Bitcoin Core binaries, as built by the Bitcoin Core team, that has been targeted by state-sponsored attackers that we know of at this point."
"Perhaps certain sites where people download the binaries could end up getting compromised, but let's not unnecessarily spread paranoia about the Bitcoin Core binaries themselves."
Verify Signatures and Hashes
As a countermeasure, users are recommended to verify the Signature securely and hashes of Bitcoin Core binaries that are cryptographically signed with a key before running Bitcoin Core binaries to ensure the binaries are legitimate as being created by the Core developers team.
"We strongly recommend that you download that key, which should have a fingerprint of 01EA5486DE18A882D4C2684590C8019E36C2E964. You should securely verify the signature and hashes before running any Bitcoin Core binaries," the advisory states.
Moreover, you are advised to download the binaries from the official Bitcoin site only; otherwise, you may end up getting compromised.
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Story highlightsLionel Messi scores his first international goal for Argentina in 16 games Gonzalo Higuain also nets a hat-trick in 4-1 victory at home to ChileCopa America champions Uruguay open World Cup campaign with victory2014 World Cup hosts Brazil beat Costa Rica 1-0 in friendly internationalLionel Messi ended his international goal drought to help Argentina make the perfect start to the 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign under new coach Alejandro Sabella on Friday.Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Higuain scored a hat-trick in the 4-1 victory over Chile but of similar importance was Messi's first strike in 16 games for La Albiceleste.Handed the captain's armband by Sabella, Messi made it 2-0 in the 26th minute after combining with Higuain to end a run going back two years and seven months.Messi replied in kind to set up Higuain's hat-trick in the 63rd minute, while Angel Di Maria laid on his clubmate's other two goals.Chile, missing injured key players Alexis Sanchez and Gary Medel, had pulled it back to 3-1 through Matias Fernandez on the hour."It was important to get off on the right foot and we did just that," Higuain said in quotes reported by AFP, having also scored a treble in his last match for Real. "I liked a lot of what we did tonight. Now we have to keep this up." Sabella took over from Sergio Batista after Argentina lost in the Copa America quarterfinals on home soil in July, and his next task is a trip to Venezuela on Tuesday.Venezuela's campaign began with a 2-0 defeat at Ecuador on Friday, with the Copa semifinalists' most-capped player Jose Manuel Rey sent off with 12 minutes to play for a second yellow card.Strikers Jaime Ayovi and Christian Benitez gave Ecuador a commanding lead inside the opening 30 minutes. Copa champions Uruguay made a perfect start with a 4-2 victory at home to Bolivia.Strikers Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani helped make it 3-1 at halftime, while defender captain Diego Lugano netted his second goal with 18 minutes to play before Marcelo Martins' late consolation penalty.Copa runners-up Paraguay crashed to a 2-0 defeat away to Peru, who built on their third-place finish as striker Jose Paolo Guerrero netted both goals in the second half.Paraguay host Uruguay on Tuesday, while Peru visit Chile and Bolivia are at home to Colombia.Brazil, assured of a place as hosts of the 2014 tournament, beat Costa Rica in a friendly on Friday.Striker Neymar netted a 60th-minute winner before the home team had Heiner Mora sent off late in San Jose.
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(CNN)At least two people were wounded after police in the Dutch city of Rotterdam fired warning shots during a protest over Covid-19 measures on Friday, the first of a handful of anti-lockdown protests planned across Europe this weekend.Rotterdam Police said the demonstration on Coolsingel, one of the main streets in the center of the city, "resulted in riots." They said numerous fires were started, fireworks were let off and officers were forced to use warning shots to disperse crowds."We fired warning shots and there were also direct shots fired because the situation was life-threatening," police spokesperson Patricia Wessels told Reuters."We know that at least two people were wounded, probably as a result of the warning shots, but we need to investigate the exact causes further," she said.The unrest in Rotterdam on Friday involved several hundred protesters, the torching of cars and police vehicles being damaged. The protests were organized after the Netherlands reimposed some lockdown measures last weekend for an initial three weeks, in an effort to slow a wave of coronavirus cases. Daily infections are at their highest levels since the start of the pandemic, as the country struggles to beat back a wave of transmission that has swept central Europe.Read MoreProtesters voiced their opposition to "corona passes," which show a person's vaccination status and are required to enter a number of public venues. The pass is also available to people who have not been vaccinated, but have proof of a negative test.But they were condemned by Rotterdam's mayor, Ahmed Aboutaleb, who called the event "an orgy of violence.""Police were forced to draw their weapons and even fire direct shots," he said at a press conference on Saturday, Reuters reported. It was "an orgy of violence, I can't think of another way to describe it," he added.The Rotterdam event is one of a number of anti-lockdown demonstrations planned for the weekend, with police in Vienna, Copenhagen and Budapest braced for protests. The Dutch capital Amsterdam is also expecting protests on Saturday afternoon.Rotterdam police shut down public transportation and ordered people to go home on Friday as protests escalated.Video posted on social media appeared to show burnt-out police cars and rioters throwing fireworks and rocks at police during the demonstration in Rotterdam on Friday. In a statement on Twitter Saturday, Rotterdam police said at least seven people were injured. They did not disclose the severity or nature of the injuries but noted that police officers had also been injured. At least 20 arrests were made following the unrest, according to police. The police statement said they used a "maximum deployment of the police necessary to restore public order," and urged people to stay away from Coolsignel. Police issued an emergency ordinance in Rotterdam, shutting down public transportation and ordering people to go home. Water cannons were deployed and police on horseback carried out charges to disperse the crowds, police said.The authorities also called on bystanders and people who recorded images of the riots to send the footage to police for further investigation.
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Security researchers have discovered a new data-stealing Trojan that makes special use of USB devices in order to spread itself and does not leave any trace of activity on the compromised systems.
Dubbed USB Thief ( or Win32/PSW.Stealer.NAI), the malware has the capability of stealthy attacking against air-gapped or isolated computers, warns ESET security firm.
The malware author has employed special programs to protect the USB Thief from being reproduced or copied, making it even harder to detect and reverse-engineer.
USB Thief has been designed for targeted attacks on computer systems that are isolated from the Internet, according to the ESET malware analyst Tomáš Gardoň.
The 'USB Thief' Trojan Malware
The USB Thief Trojan malware is stored either as a portable application's plugin source or as a Dynamically Linked Library (DLL) used by the portable application.
Since USB devices often store popular applications like Firefox, Notepad++ or TrueCrypt portable, once any of these applications is executed, the malware starts running in the background.
USB Thief is capable of stealing data from air-gapped systems – systems that are isolated from the Internet and other external networks.
"Well, taking into account that organizations isolate some of their systems for a good reason," explained Peter Stancik, the security evangelist at ESET. "Any tool capable of attacking these so called air-gapped systems must be regarded as dangerous."
The malware runs from a USB removable device, so it don't leave any traces of its activities, and thus, victims do not even notice that their data had been stolen.
Since the malware is bound to a single USB device, it prevents USB Thief from leaking from the infected computers.
Besides this, USB Thief utilizes a sophisticated implementation of multi-staged encryption that makes the malware harder to detect and analyse.
"This is not a very common way to trick users, but very dangerous," Stancik said. "People should understand the risks associated with USB storage devices obtained from sources that may not be trustworthy."
Here's How you can Protect from being Infected:
Do not use USB storage devices from non-trustworthy sources.
Turn off Autorun
Regularly backup your data
More technical details are available on ESET Ireland's official blog.
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A sad reality for gamers all around the world who enjoy playing the very popular game Minecraft on their PCs. If you are one of them, you'll want to pay attention here.
A plain text file containing over 1,800 Minecraft account usernames and passwords has just been leaked online, German media reports. The details available in the leak has been posted to Pastebin, which would allow anyone to log into a legitimate user's account in order to play online and download the full version of the game to their own computers.
However, the more serious implication of the leaked credentials would be for those affected users who had used the same username and password combination for other online services, like shopping site, banking site, email service or for any social networking site.
Minecraft is an incredibly popular online game bought by Microsoft just few months back for $2.5 billion. The game has more than 100 million registered accounts for its PC version alone, and 1800 leaked accounts is just a fraction of the overall Minecraft population. This means its an extremely minor breach.
However, the problem could be serious for both Minecraft's developer Mojang and its parent company Microsoft if the leaked player data turns out to be just the beginning of the data breach.
Microsoft's Xbox Live gaming service has regularly been a target for hackers. On Christmas day, Microsoft's Xbox Live service knocked offline by hackers group, Lizard squad, who launched Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack against the gaming network. Sony's Playstation was also targeted by the group at the same time. And now another gaming brand of Microsoft is under attack.
So far, there's no clue as to where the credentials obtained, or if the leak itself is a herald to a much larger attack targeted at Minecraft.
"There's no guarantee that whoever gained access to them hasn't got a whole lot more in their back pocket which they haven't chosen to release to the rest of the world," wrote Graham Cluley.
"There is no mention of the security breach on Minecraft's homepage, but my recommendation would be that if users have any concern that their accounts might be exposed to hackers that they should change their passwords immediately. It goes without saying that they should be particularly concerned if they are using the same password anywhere else on the web."
At the moment, both Microsoft and Minecraft have not publicly acknowledged the leak. Just to keep yourself safe, we strongly recommend you to change your passwords to your Minecraft's account and others if you use the same as soon as possible.
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In a major blow, the U.S. Department of Justice on Monday said it has recovered 63.7 bitcoins (currently valued at $2.3 million) paid by Colonial Pipeline to the DarkSide ransomware extortionists on May 8, pursuant to a seizure warrant that was authorized by the Northern District of California.
The ransomware attack also hobbled the pipeline company's fuel supply, prompting the government to issue an emergency declaration, even as the company shelled out a ransom amount of approximately 75 bitcoins ($4.4 million as of May 8) to regain access to its systems.
A week after the highly publicized incident, the ransomware-as-a-service syndicate disbanded with a May 14 farewell message to affiliates, stating that its internet servers and cryptocurrency stash were seized by unknown law enforcement entities. While DarkSide's announcement was perceived as an exit scam, the latest move from DoJ confirms earlier speculations of law enforcement involvement.
Stating that "ransom payments are the fuel that propels the digital extortion engine," the DoJ said it followed the money trails left by the DarkSide gang to a specific bitcoin address by reviewing the Bitcoin public ledger, to which the proceeds of the ransom payment were transferred, ultimately using the "private key" the FBI had in its possession to access crypto assets stored in the wallet in question.
"There is no place beyond the reach of the FBI to conceal illicit funds that will prevent us from imposing risk and consequences upon malicious cyber actors," said FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate. "We will continue to use all of our available resources and leverage our domestic and international partnerships to disrupt ransomware attacks and protect our private sector partners and the American public."
It's not immediately clear how the intelligence agency came to have the private key, but DarkSide had previously claimed to have lost access to one of their payment servers.
Blockchain analytics firm Elliptic, which had identified the bitcoin transaction representing the Colonial Pipeline ransom payment, said the seized bitcoins represent 85% of the total ransom amount which is typically reserved for affiliates, with the rest going to the DarkSide developers. The Bitcoin address was emptied at around 1:40 p.m. ET on Monday, Dr. Tom Robinson, Elliptic's co-founder and chief scientist, said.
If anything, the seizure marks a first-of-its-kind orchestrated effort led by the DoJ's newly formed Ransomware and Digital Extortion Task Force to confiscate a cybercriminal cartel's illicit profits by breaking into its bitcoin wallet using its private key likely stored in the seized servers, as implied in the warrant.
"Holding cyber criminals accountable and disrupting the ecosystem that allows them to operate is the best way to deter and defend against future attacks of this nature," Colonial Pipeline CEO Joseph Blount said in the statement. "The private sector also has an equally important role to play and we must continue to take cyber threats seriously and invest accordingly to harden our defenses."
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Story highlights92% of pollution-related deaths occur in low and middle income countriesPollution, including heavy metals are damaging to kids' brains (CNN)The fatal effects of pollution are seen across our planet.In 2015, nearly one in six deaths, an estimated nine million worldwide, was related to pollution in some form -- air, water, soil, chemical or occupational pollution, according to a new report published Thursday in The Lancet.Air pollution is by far the largest contributor to early death, according to the new research produced by The Lancet Commission on Pollution and Health. This form of pollution is linked to 6.5 million fatalities in 2015. Water pollution, responsible for 1.8 million deaths, and workplace-related pollution, which led to 0.8 million deaths, pose the next largest risks, the report noted.
rRead MoreThe overwhelming majority of pollution-related casualties -- 92% -- occur among people living in low- and middle-income countries. And, one in every four early deaths in nations trying to industrialize rapidly -- such as India, Pakistan, China, Bangladesh, Madagascar and Kenya -- could be connected to filthy air, water, soil or other contamination. "Pollution disproportionately impacts the poor and the vulnerable," said Dr. Olusoji Adeyi, a commissioner and director of the health, nutrition and population global practice at the World Bank Group.In countries at every income level, disease caused by pollution is most prevalent among minorities and the marginalized."Children face the highest risks," said Adeyi. "It is important to translate awareness into action at the local, national, and global levels."Dr. Philip J. Landrigan, co-leader of the commission, said the problem is chemicals."There are thousands of chemicals out there and we know that people are exposed to them," said Landrigan. "We just didn't know enough about what chemicals are doing to people."Unlikely case study In the months leading up to the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China's air quality became a matter of international concern. Smog obscured the blue sky and distant buildings even on days the nation's Ministry of Environmental Protection reported excellent air quality.Quietly, the United States Embassy in Beijing acquired a stationary monitor to track particulates and later, three additional hand-held air monitors. Embassy officials "worked closely with the US EPA "to set up the rooftop air monitoring equipment, explained Noel Clay, a spokesperson for the State Department. To "put it gently," said Landrigan, people saw the US Embassy data as "unbiased" compared to the air quality data being released by Chinese officials. Embassy officials wanted the more reliable data to "make better daily decisions regarding the safety of outdoor activities," said Clay.Can China fix its mammoth water crisis before it's too late?Soon, though, the data gained a wider audience than intended."There's a lot of kids in China who are very internet savvy," said Landrigan. These kids figured out how to access the data, which was published online by the US Embassy, and once that hurdle was cleared, the Chinese citizens themselves "started buying monitors and doing their own testing and sharing their results over the internet." Accelerated by the US Embassy in Beijing, air quality data went viral across China. "It became a very powerful bottom-up influence that I think factored into the Chinese government's decision to do something -- they're actually taking major strides in China to control air pollution now," said Landrigan.Now he's seeing the same thing happen again in other regions of the globe. With the cost of a reliable air monitor priced around $100, said Landrigan, "more and more people around the world are starting on their own -- citizen scientists if you will -- to collect air pollution data."Traditional versus modernThe data for this new report comes from "two very credible sources," noted Landrigan: The World Health Organization and The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, which is based at Seattle's University of Washington and is funded by the Gates Foundation. Data is collected by satellites and other monitoring technologies, which, due to increasing sophistication, provide more information today than in the past."For the first time, we pulled out and collected in one place all of the information on deaths caused by all forms of pollution combined -- in other words, air pollution, water pollution, chemical pollution, soil pollution, occupational pollution in the workplace -- and put it all together," said Landrigan who is also a professor of preventive medicine and pediatrics at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. The very poorest countries have many fewer deaths from pollution than the people on the next rung up -- the lower-middle income countries, noted Landrigan. "This is not traditional pollution that is killing people in these rapidly industrializing lower middle-income countries, it's urban industrial air pollution -- chemical pollution," he said.Traditional pollution arises at the household level and is associated with profound poverty, said Landrigan. Household air pollution resulting from poorly ventilated indoor cook stoves and fecal contamination of drinking water are the major forms of traditional pollution. Modern forms of pollution are outdoor air pollution, chemical pollution, soil pollution and occupational pollution, all associated with modern industry, modern cities, modern lifestyle. "All of those are going up," said Landrigan, adding that the number of deaths associated with modern pollutions have increased year to year.Regulation and economicsThe other thing that's new about this report is that economists on the commission's team developed a separate analysis to calculate the costs that result from diseases caused by pollution, added Landrigan."Just look at the experience within our country," said Landrigan pointing out a graph in the report that shows how pollution decreased by 70% from 1970 to 2015 following passage of the Clean Air Act in 1970. "In that same 45-year period, the GDP has increased by 250%," said Landrigan, who noted this does not support arguments suggesting pollution regulation stifles the economy.Nicholas Burger, senior economist and director of the Center for Research and Policy in International Development at the RAND Corporation, said the numbers look right but this type of economic analysis is "incredibly difficult." Burger was not involved in the Commission or its report."Simply saying we've observed this level of growth and we've observed this level of pollution reduction is not enough to make a strong statement that absent the pollution reduction we would have seen the same level of growth --- or lower growth or higher growth," said Burger. It is necessary to understand what would have happened absent those regulations, noted Burger. And that's not easy to answer on the macro level. A spate of deadly disasters for the elderly"There's pretty strong evidence that pollution control policy -- pollution regulation -- does not adversely affect growth by as much as people often argue that it does or that we might tend to think that it does," said Burger. He added there are even some instances where researchers believe pollution policy has not harmed economic growth or perhaps even "enhanced growth.""You put a scrubber on a power plant to remove the harmful pollutants coming out of the stack of that power plant that is going to make that power plant less efficient -- that's basic physics," he noted. But the question is how much less efficient? Industry often comes up with ways to exceed the efficiency requirements of regulators. One theme that comes out of the regulation research is to never underestimate the efficiency and innovation abilities of Western industries, said Burger.Michigan officials charged in Flint Legionnaires' outbreakEven when regulations slow growth of one industry, then, other businesses providing goods and services to accommodate the new regulations may grow. Consider, though, that health care costs are also part of the GDP.It's extremely complicated trying to calculate "how the economy would reorient itself and reoptimize itself" with or without pollution regulations, said Burger. Still, Commission Co-leader Richard Fuller of Pure Earth, USA, an international non-profit, maintains that countries can have "consistent economic growth with low pollution" and he bases this opinion on the experiences of Western nations.Lessons from the West "If you just think about it, anecdotally in the West, we really did knock pollution on the head," Fuller said. The rules and regulations of the 1960s and 1970s made our water safe to drink and the air reasonably clean. "It's certainly enormously better than it used to be," said Fuller. When you see pictures of Beijing filled with "nasty, gunky air, that's how it was in New York City and in Pittsburgh and in Los Angeles back in the '60s and even in the '70s," he said. Meanwhile, in lower income countries, ministers of finance believe that you need to "allow pollution to happen in order to become industrialized," said Fuller. "If you adopt green growth strategies it's more likely -- according to the literature -- you will actually grow stronger because you won't have people sick or dying before their time." Poor health and early death requires people to look after others and this "costs" societies wanting to grow. "It's a key message in the report," said Fuller, who hopes the new report gets the development community to consider pollution "as an issue they should worry about it, an issue that should be on the global agenda."The pollution piece of the agenda has largely been forgotten because the planet is cleaner due to efforts made in the US and Europe, "but it hasn't had the same effort in the rest of the world," said Fuller.So what can people do?"People should go to www.pollution.org," said Fuller. While the data is not comprehensive, it's the best available for people to see what is happening in their own neighborhoods. "If you're not seeing what you're feeling, you can add your story," said Fuller. These civic contributions will be brought into policy discussions happening in the concerned country, said Fuller. The website, then, is "a place for people to have their voice get heard in a non-confrontational way."Exposure to air pollution before birth may shorten our lives Individual voices need to be heard, Fuller noted, because worldwide, children are vulnerable."The thing that worries me most in all this is the neurological damage that many of these toxins have," said Fuller. Heavy metals, including lead, damage kids' brains. Join the conversationSee the latest news and share your comments with CNN Health on Facebook and Twitter."My concern is if you release a toxin in China, it can end up in LA just as easily," said Fuller. Particulate matter travels, he said, with research demonstrating that carbon from burning coal in China is in air pollution in LA. "We need to look after it because they're going to poison us as well."CORRECTION: This story has been corrected to say one in six deaths was related to pollution and to identify RAND as a corporation.
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Story highlightsFabrice Muamba was able to watch some of Bolton's 2-1 win against BlackburnThe midfielder suffered a cardiac arrest during a match with Tottenham on March 17Bolton manager says Muamba is becoming aware of the support he's received Muamba is still in intensive care at a London hospital but is making progressJust one week after suffering an on-field cardiac arrest, soccer player Fabrice Muamba was able to watch most of his team Bolton's emotional victory over English Premier League relegation rivals Blackburn Rovers on Saturday."The fact he was able to watch a large part of the game, given where we were a week ago, is great news," Bolton manager Owen Coyle told the club's website on Monday."He was pleased that his teammates won the match, although he fell back asleep when the score was 2-0."The 23-year-old midfielder's heart stopped for 78 minutes following his collapse during the previous weekend's FA Cup quarterfinal against Tottenham, which will be replayed on Tuesday following its initial abandonment at halftime.Bolton beat Blackburn 2-1, boosting the club's hopes of staying in the top division.Fans lay shirts outside the stadium showing their support for Muamba before the match, then inside they held up cards which spelled out his name and shirt number in a huge mosaic.His continued recovery has been described by the head of world football, FIFA president Sepp Blatter, as "a miracle" and his plight has attracted international attention, with players across Europe taking to the field in t-shirts expressing support for the Kinshasa-born player."In the last 48 hours he is beginning to become aware of the global response, and he is overwhelmed by all the support," Coyle said."His family continue to spend time with Fabrice and a couple of players will visit him over these next few days to represent the squad. He is still in intensive care and it's important that he doesn't have too many visitors as he continues his recovery, step by step."The London Chest Hospital, where Muamba is being treated, confirmed that he is making progress."His condition is serious but stable," it said in a joint statement with Bolton. "He continues to make encouraging progress in his recovery. "Over the weekend, he has been able to sit out of bed for a short time, watch television and has begun to eat. However, he will need to continue to be closely monitored by the medical team here for some time."Born in what is now known as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Muamba came to the UK with his family in 1999 at the age of 11 and went on to captain England's Under-21 team.He made his name at Birmingham before joining Bolton in 2008.
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The US-CERT has released a joint technical alert from the DHS, the FBI, and Treasury warning about a new ATM scheme being used by the prolific North Korean APT hacking group known as Hidden Cobra.
Hidden Cobra, also known as Lazarus Group and Guardians of Peace, is believed to be backed by the North Korean government and has previously launched attacks against a number of media organizations, aerospace, financial and critical infrastructure sectors across the world.
The group had also reportedly been associated with the WannaCry ransomware menace that last year shut down hospitals and big businesses worldwide, the SWIFT Banking attack in 2016, as well as the Sony Pictures hack in 2014.
Now, the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the Department of the Treasury have released details about a new cyber attack, dubbed "FASTCash," that Hidden Cobra has been using since at least 2016 to cash out ATMs by compromising the bank server.
FASTCash Hack Fools ATMs into Spitting Out Cash
The investigators analyzed 10 malware samples associated with FASTCash cyber attacks and found that attackers remotely compromise payment "switch application servers" within the targeted banks to facilitate fraudulent transactions.
Switch application server is an essential component of ATMs and Point-of-Sale infrastructures that communicates with the core banking system to validate user's bank account details for a requested transaction.
Whenever you use your payment card in an ATM or a PoS machine in a retailer shop, the software asks (in ISO 8583 messages formats) the bank's switch application server to validate the transaction—accept or decline, depending upon the available amount in your bank account.
However, Hidden Cobra attackers managed to compromise the switch application servers at different banks, where they had accounts (and their payment cards) with minimal activity or zero balances.
The malware installed on the compromised switch application servers then intercepts transaction request associated with the attackers' payment cards and responds with fake but legitimate-looking affirmative response without actually validating their available balance with the core banking systems, eventually fooling ATMs to spit out a large number of cash without even notifying the bank.
"According to a trusted partner's estimation, HIDDEN COBRA actors have stolen tens of millions of dollars," the reports says.
"In one incident in 2017, HIDDEN COBRA actors enabled cash to be simultaneously withdrawn from ATMs located in over 30 different countries. In another incident in 2018, HIDDEN COBRA actors enabled cash to be simultaneously withdrawn from ATMs in 23 different countries."
Hidden Cobra threat actors are using the FASTCash scheme to target banks in Africa and Asia, though the U.S. authorities are still investigating the FASTCash incidents to confirm whether the attack targets banks in the United States.
How Attackers Managed to Compromise Banks' Switch Application Servers
Though the initial infection vector used to compromise Bank networks is unknown, the U.S. authorities believe that the APT threat actors used spear-phishing emails, containing malicious Windows executable, against employees in different banks.
Once opened, the executable infected bank employees' computers with Windows-based malware, allowing hackers to move laterally through a bank's network using legitimate credentials and deploy malware onto the payment switch application server.
Though most compromised switch application servers were found running unsupported IBM Advanced Interactive eXecutive (AIX) operating system versions, investigators found no evidence that attackers exploited any vulnerability in AIX operating system.
US-CERT recommended banks to make two-factor authentication mandatory before any user can access the switch application server, and use best practices to protect their networks.
US-CERT has also provided a downloadable copy of IOCs (indicators of compromise), to help you block them and enable network defenses to reduce exposure to any malicious cyber activity by the Hidden Cobra hacking group.
In May 2018, the US-CERT also published an advisory alerting users of two different malware—Remote Access Trojan (RAT) known as Joanap and Server Message Block (SMB) worm called Brambul—linked to Hidden Cobra.
Last year, the DHS and the FBI also issued an alert describing Hidden Cobra malware Delta Charlie—a DDoS tool that they believed North Korea uses to launch distributed denial-of-service attacks against its targets.
Other malware linked to Hidden Cobra in the past includes Destover, Wild Positron or Duuzer, and Hangman with sophisticated capabilities, like DDoS botnets, keyloggers, remote access tools (RATs), and wiper malware.
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Story highlightsKerber re-hired her coach in 2015Since won 2 slams, Olympic silver medalNow the new No. 1 in women's tennis (CNN)"Movember" has come a month or so early for Torben Beltz -- but the coach of new women's tennis No. 1 Angelique Kerber is happy to let his facial hair keep growing and growing.While the charity aims to promote awareness of men's health issues by encouraging mustaches, Beltz's hirsuteness represents the German's surging career fortunes. "I think I'm more superstitious than her maybe," Beltz told CNN's Open Court in New York a day after Kerber clinched her second grand slam title, both of which have come this the year."Because when she's winning, I'm not shaving." Beltz grew a beard during the US Open, and had a bet with Kerber he'd sport a mustache during the WTA Tour's Asian swing tournaments in Asia this month and the next if she won the title. Read MoreThe 28-year-old responded by beating Czech surprise package Karolina Pliskova in the final at Flushing Meadows. Kerber has turned her career around since reuniting with coach Torben Beltz.Turning point"In the past when I was playing I didn't shave, and I still keep on doing this as a coach," Beltz said. "If she keeps on winning for two weeks like here it's getting really big my beard."Welcome to World No.1 @AngeliqueKerber! ☝️ pic.twitter.com/dIlhflgh5g— WTA (@WTA) September 9, 2016
They started working together when Kerber turned pro in 2003. Eight years later she reached the US Open semifinals, and in 2012 continued her breakthrough by winning her first two titles, making the last four at Wimbledon and rising to No. 5 in the world rankings.They parted ways at the end of 2013, but reunited in 2015 after Kerber lost in the opening round of the Australian Open and dropped out of the top 10. It proved to be the turning point of her career. Under her compatriot's guidance, Kerber became fitter and more aggressive. This season, she won the Australian Open (which she celebrated by jumping in Melbourne's Yarra river after a bet) and the US Open, reached the Wimbledon final, clinched the silver medal at the Rio Olympics and knocked 22-time major singles champion Serena Williams off the top spot of women's tennis after 186 weeks. Read: Chinese tennis' $225M gambleKerber talks to Beltz at a 2013 tournament in Sydney. 'Good vibe'Keeping Kerber on her toes with bets and games forms an important part of their player-coach relationship. JUST WATCHEDAngelique Kerber wins US OpenReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHAngelique Kerber wins US Open 01:28"We have a really good relationship," says Beltz, who turns 40 in late November. "We have a good vibe. We can work hard together. And also off the court. We like to go to the cinema, we like to play games, backgammon and stuff."But once they hit the practice courts, Kerber is all business and constantly looking to improve. "She wants to get something out of it," Beltz says. "That's a good attitude. Already now we're thinking about some stuff because she's No. 1, some new stuff we want to do. It's not the end of the road -- we really want to go forward now and take the next step to stay there, to play better tennis."Follow @cnnsport
Have your say on our Facebook pageStubbornAs well as her two grand slam titles, Kerber also reached the 2016 Wimbledon final.Losing is part and parcel of a tennis player's life, even if you are the No. 1 in the world, and at times Kerber can be "a little bit stubborn," Beltz says. Visit cnn.com/tennis for more news and videos"You can see it on TV when she's a little bit frustrated and she's looking at me in some ways. But actually right now everything is positive. She won the US Open, she's very happy, the coach is very happy too, so it's really good now."On Tuesday, Kerber made a winning start to life as world No. 1, beating Kristina Mladenovic 6-7 6-1 6-4 to reach the third round of the Wuhan Open in China.
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Just imagine, you are sitting in front of your laptop and your laptop is listening to your nearby conversations. What if the recorded audio from the system's microphone is being instantly uploaded to a malicious website?
Google has created a speech-recognition Application Programming Interface (API) that allows websites to interact with Google Chrome and the computer's microphone allows you to speak instead of typing into any text box, to make hands-free web searches, quick conversions, and audio translator also work with them.
In January, a flaw was discovered in Google Chrome that enabled malicious websites with speech recognition software to eavesdrop on users' conversations from background without their knowledge using an outdated Google speech API.
CHROME IS LISTENING YOU
A new similar vulnerability in Google Chrome has been discovered by Israeli security researcher, Guy Aharonovsky, claimed that the Chrome's speech-recognition API has a vulnerability that allows attackers to turn victim's machine into a listening port without asking for any permission, even if your microphone is completely disabled.
"Even blocking any access to the microphone under chrome://settings/content will not remedy this flaw." he said in a blog post.
Reported vulnerability exploits the "-x-webkit-speech" feature of Chrome's speech-recognition API and allows a malicious web application to eavesdrop in the background without any indication to the user that their microphone is enabled.
He has also published a Proof-of-Concept webpage and a video demonstration, designed to work on Chrome for Mac operating system, but the exploit only works for Chrome for any operating system.
In demonstration, he has used HTML5 full screen feature to the indication box.
"In Chrome all one need in order to access the user's speech is to use this line of HTML5 code: <input -x-webkit-speech="" /> that's all; there will be no fancy confirmation screens. When the user clicks on that little grey microphone he will be recorded. The user will see the 'indication box' telling him to "Speak now" but that can be pushed out of the screen and / or obfuscated."
He has reported the flaw to Google via Chromium bug tracker. They confirmed the existence of the vulnerability, but assigned it 'low' severity level, that means Google will not offer any immediate fix for this flaw.
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Story highlightsManchester City midfielder Yaya Toure urges UEFA to take action on racismToure says he was racially abused during game at CSKA MoscowVincent Kompany makes plea on TwitterClub to make an official complaint following incidentIt's supposed to be known as the "Beautiful Game" but the ugly face of racism returned to haunt European football once again Wednesday.Manchester City's Yaya Toure, the Ivory Coast midfielder, was subjected to "monkey chants" during his side's 2-1 Champions League win against CSKA Moscow in Russia.City is expected to make a formal complaint to UEFA, the game's European governing body, with Toure urging for action to be taken following his side's victory courtesy of two goals from Sergio Aguero.Read: The Secret Footballer on racism in soccer"A couple of months ago, a friend was playing at Milan and he had the same problem, and today with me again, it's always the same," he told the club's official website."I hope they will change it, I hope they will get big sanctions. They have to ban them at some stage, they have to ban a club for a couple of years. Photos: Restoring an Italian classic Photos: Restoring an Italian classicJuve joy – Juventus president Andrea Agnelli (left) celebrates the Old Lady's 2013 Serie A title win with the club's coach Antonio Conte.Hide Caption 1 of 5 Photos: Restoring an Italian classicBack-to-back titles – The "Bianconeri" won their first Serie A title for nine years in 2011, going through the season unbeaten. It capped their resurgence after the "Calciopoli" match-fixing scandal that saw them stripped of two Serie A titles and demoted to Serie B in 2006.Hide Caption 2 of 5 Photos: Restoring an Italian classicTevez talent – Juventus acquired Argentina striker Carlos Tevez from Manchester City in June 2013 ahead of the club's bid for a third straight Serie A title. In third place after eight games, Conte's team is desperate to again qualify for the lucrative European Champions League.Hide Caption 3 of 5 Photos: Restoring an Italian classicJuventus Stadium – The club moved from the dilapidated Stadio delle Alpi to the new Juventus Stadium in 2011. It is smaller, but attendances are up -- as is revenue. Agnelli is hoping other clubs in Serie A with old stadiums will follow Juve's lead.Hide Caption 4 of 5 Photos: Restoring an Italian classicUp close and personal – Juventus Stadium provides better facilities for fans and also a more intimate experience, with supporters being much closer to the action than they were at the cavernous Stadio delle Alpi.Hide Caption 5 of 5JUST WATCHEDDid FIFA make a mistake on Qatar?ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHDid FIFA make a mistake on Qatar? 03:42JUST WATCHEDFootball comes to Buckingham PalaceReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHFootball comes to Buckingham Palace 00:52"They don't know. They have to do something about it or they will always continue with it. I don't know why we just have this in football -- in volleyball or rugby, we don't have it."A few times when I went to the goal and tried to score, I missed it, some of the fans reacted badly. It's always the same - what they say about racism, but they have to stop it now. We have to act, I hope that UEFA will take action. I want it to stop."If UEFA don't take action about that, it will continue. We always have some guy saying 'we will have it, blah blah blah'."Toure went on Twitter to thanks fans for their support following the incident with thousands retweeting his sentiments.He tweeted: "Thank you for your support! Hate or racism cannot affect me when so many people are showing me love and support on a daily basis!"I believe in football institutions, I know decision makers will take their responsibilities and show a red card to racism."City captain Vincent Kompany, who is of Congolese descent, took to Twitter to hit out at the abuse and sent a message to UEFA and the Russian government."Racist chants again in Moscow today.. We've all said enough. @UEFAcom, @GovernmentRF, CSKA, all eyes are on you now.."Read: Racism remains "significant" problem in English footballUEFA has vowed to crack down harder on fans which continue to partake in racial abuse.In May, the body's executive committee ratified a 10-match minimum ban for racial abuse by players or officials.At the time, UEFA General Secretary Gianni Infantino stated that the organization's 53 members should adopt the same measures. Photos: The seven moments which define Alex Ferguson Photos: The seven moments which define Alex FergusonA formidable forward – As a player, Alex Ferguson enjoyed a moderately successful career. A prolific striker, he scored 170 goals in 317 appearances including 25 goals in 41 appearances for Glasgow Rangers.Hide Caption 1 of 7 Photos: The seven moments which define Alex FergusonAce of Aberdeen – Ferguson was appointed manager of Aberdeen in 1978. In addition to three Scottish First Division titles, Ferguson guided the club to an impressive triumph over Real Madrid in the 1983 European Cup Winners' Cup.Hide Caption 2 of 7 Photos: The seven moments which define Alex Ferguson"The king is dead" – Ferguson was assistant to Scotland coach Jock Stein during the qualifying campaign for the 1986 World Cup. Scotland secured a 1-1 draw against Wales in their final game to reach the tournament, but Stein collapsed and died following the final whistle in Cardiff.Hide Caption 3 of 7 Photos: The seven moments which define Alex FergusonFA Cup salvation – A late winner from substitute Mark Robbins in an FA Cup replay against Nottingham Forest in January 1990 allegedly spared Ferguson the sack. United went on to beat Crystal Palace at the second attempt in the final, giving Ferguson his first trophy at Old Trafford.Hide Caption 4 of 7 Photos: The seven moments which define Alex FergusonU-turn – The Scot originally planned to retire from management at the end of the 2001-02 season. But, after helping the team recover from a slip in form which saw them drop as low as ninth in the Premier League table, Ferguson reversed his decision in February 2002 and signed a new three-year contract.Hide Caption 5 of 7 Photos: The seven moments which define Alex FergusonFlying boot – A boot flew into the face of Manchester United's star midfielder David Beckham after Ferguson lost his temper following a 2-0 FA Cup defeat to Arsenal in February 2003. Beckham had to be held back following the incident and he joined Real Madrid ahead of the following season.Hide Caption 6 of 7 Photos: The seven moments which define Alex FergusonTreble – Ferguson's finest hour arrived in Barcelona in May 1999, when his United team came from 1-0 down in the 90th minute to beat Bayern Munich 2-1 in the European Champions League final. The win completed an historic treble of titles won during the 1998-99 season, which included the Premier League title and the FA Cup.Hide Caption 7 of 7 Photos: Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss Photos: Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss – Just what did former Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson think about Wayne Rooney, Roy Keane, David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo? Read on......Hide Caption 1 of 11 Photos: Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss – England striker Wayne Rooney joined Manchester United from Everton in 2004. "Wayne Rooney is a slow learner and he struggles to stay fit," says Ferguson of the England international in his autobiography.Hide Caption 2 of 11 Photos: Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss – Roy Keane played for Manchester United between 1993 and 2005, but the Republic of Ireland midfielder fell out spectacularly with the Old Trafford manager after he criticized his teammates on the club's television channel. "What I noticed about him that day as I was arguing with him was that his eyes started to narrow, almost to wee black beads. It was frightening to watch. And I'm from Glasgow," writes Ferguson.Hide Caption 3 of 11 Photos: Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss – There is no mention of David Beckham's wife Victoria -- Posh Spice -- in the chapter of the book that Ferguson devotes to the player. "The big problem for me ... he fell in love with Victoria and that changed everything," said Ferguson in his press conference to promote the book.Hide Caption 4 of 11 Photos: Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss – In 2011 Manchester United defender Patrice Evra complained he had been racially abused by Liverpool striker Luis Suarez, who was subsequently handed an eight-match ban by the English Football Association. "Liverpool wore those T-shirts supporting Suarez, which I thought was the most ridiculous thing for a club of Liverpool's stature," writes Ferguson.Hide Caption 5 of 11 Photos: Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss – "In all the times I'm asked I find it impossible to definitely say which is the better player -- Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi -- because to relegate either to second place would feel wrong," writes Ferguson.Hide Caption 6 of 11 Photos: Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss – "Messi has something magical about him when the ball touches his feet," writes Ferguson. "It's as if it's landed on a bed of feathers. His low sense of gravity is devastating."Hide Caption 7 of 11 Photos: Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss – Ferguson says he was twice asked to manage England. "It wasn't a bed of nails I was ever tempted to lie on," writes the former Manchester United manager.Hide Caption 8 of 11 Photos: Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss – Sven-Goran Eriksson took charge of the England team between 2001 and 2006. "I remember asking Paul Scholes one day: 'Scholesy, what's Eriksson got?' but Scholesy could shed no light."Hide Caption 9 of 11 Photos: Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss – Ferguson is full of praise for Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho, who is now in his second spell at Stamford Bridge. "Jose was one of those guys on a surfboard who can stay longer on the wave than anyone else," says the Scot.Hide Caption 10 of 11 Photos: Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss Alex Ferguson's book: 10 things not to miss – Sergio Aguero's stoppage-time goal in a 3-2 win against Queens Park Rangers ensured Manchester City won the 2011-2012 English Premier League title. "We were champions for 30 seconds," writes Ferguson. "When our whistle blew -- against Sunderland -- we were champions. In fairness to our players, they knew they had ballsed it up. There were no excuses."Hide Caption 11 of 11JUST WATCHEDThe business behind the World CupReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHThe business behind the World Cup 02:30According to the new regulations, the first sanction for a club whose fans are found guilty of racist abuse will be a partial stadium closure. If the abuse persists, then there will be a full stadium closure and a $65,000 fine handed out."An association should adopt the same or similar measures," Infantino said in May."UEFA has always acted in a way to try to convince people rather than impose. I don't think you measure the way of fighting against racism in one simple measure and sanction."In August, Polish club Legia Warsaw was fined $41,000 and ordered to close the north stand of its stadium following racist behavior by supporters during a Champions League second qualifying round tie. Read: Platini warns players over racism walk offsUEFA has been heavily criticized in the past for the way it has punished those found guilty of racial abuse compared with other offenses.During Euro 2012, Denmark striker Nicklas Bendtner was handed a $125,800 fine for revealing a betting company's logo on his underwear after lifting his shirt while celebrating a goal.UEFA also handed out a larger fine to Chelsea following its semifinal defeat by Barcelona in 2009 after Didier Drogba confronted referee Tom Ovrebo after his failure to award the London club several penalties.JUST WATCHEDFrom civil war to the football pitchReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHFrom civil war to the football pitch 02:58JUST WATCHEDGinola answers questions on Qatar 2022 ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHGinola answers questions on Qatar 2022 07:50 Photos: Libya's footballers in the firing line Photos: Libya's footballers in the firing lineIn the firing line – Al-Ahly of Tripoli, the country's biggest club, threatened to leave the Libyan football league after its coach and a player were both shot by snipers. The team is expected to return to action on October 26 according to the club's owner.Hide Caption 1 of 7 Photos: Libya's footballers in the firing lineCoach shot at – Coach Hossam al-Badri was shot at after his team Al-Ahly Tripoli had drawn a league match. The 53-year-old Al-Badri steered Cairo's Al -Ahly to the African Champions League title last November before joining the Libyan club in May.Hide Caption 2 of 7 Photos: Libya's footballers in the firing lineClemente calling – Former Spain coach Javier Clemente has been given the task of steering Libya to the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco. The 63-year-old, who enjoyed six years in charge of the Spanish national team between 1992-98, replaced Abdelhafidh al-Rabich.Hide Caption 3 of 7 Photos: Libya's footballers in the firing lineBuilding for the future – Libya hopes to host the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations and is already in the process of constructing a number of new venues. This stadium, which is in the southern suburbs of Tripoli, is expected to be finished in time for the tournament.Hide Caption 4 of 7 Photos: Libya's footballers in the firing linePrime Minister kidnapped – Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan was kidnapped and held for several hours by militia gunmen before being released. The incident, which highlights threats posed by militias, is just one of several which have occurred since the revolution two years ago.Hide Caption 5 of 7 Photos: Libya's footballers in the firing lineHopes of a nation – The Libyan national team is currently ranked 61st in the world and is hoping to make it through to the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations.Hide Caption 6 of 7 Photos: Libya's footballers in the firing lineFans made to wait – Football in Libya only resumed last month after being brought to a halt in February 2011 by the civil conflict which ousted the dictator Moammar Gadhafi. Fans are now hoping the latest violence won't prevent the national league from continuing.Hide Caption 7 of 7When it comes to punishment for racism, UEFA has imposed relatively small fines, which has left the governing body open to extreme criticism.Back in 2002, the Slovakian Football Association was hit with a $29,000 fine after fans abused England duo Ashley Cole and Emile Heskey.A year later, Cole, Heskey and Sol Campbell were abused while on England duty in Macedonia with the host FA being forced to pay a fine of $27,000.In June 2007, the Football Association of Serbia was punished with a $27,000 fine after its fans racially abused England players during the Under-21 Championship Finals in Holland.The Croatian FA was made to pay just $16,000 after its fans were found guilty of "displaying a racist banner and showing racist conduct" during the Euro 2008 quarterfinal tie with Turkey.In 2011, Bulgaria's FA was hit with a $54,000 fine after England's Ashley Young, Ashley Cole and Theo Walcott were racially abused during a Euro 2012 qualifier in Sofia.Porto was fined $27,000 after its fans racially abused Manchester City's Mario Balotelli during a Europa League game last April.That decision came a full six weeks after the incident and was then frowned upon further, after UEFA fined City $40,000 for coming out late ahead of the second-half of their last-16 Europa League game at Sporting Lisbon.Both Russia ($39,000) and Spain ($26,000) were fined at Euro 2012 following problems of racism, but neither country was hit as hard in the pocket as Denmark striker Bendtner.
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(CNN)There was a time when Zinedine Zidane could do no wrong. That time feels an age ago.Dressed in black and likely boasting a mood to match, Zidane watched on as his Real Madrid side succumbed to a 3-0 defeat at Paris Saint-Germain in its opening Champions League game on Wednesday.Real Madrid's French coach Zinedine Zidane looks on at Parc des Princes, Paris.Make no mistake, this was a humiliating result for Real. The fact that Angel Di Maria, a former Real player, scored twice will only rub salt into Madrid's wounds.Even if one was to discount the three goals conceded, the fact Real failed to muster a single shot on target, the first time it has failed to so in 167 Champions League games, may give an indication of the paucity of the display by a team that has won the European Cup a record 13 times.By the time Thomas Meunier, the PSG full-back, added PSG's third in the 91st minute, the game was already over. Paris Saint-Germain's Argentine midfielder Angel Di Maria celebrates scoring his team's first goal.Read More"We didn't really get properly into the game at any stage," Zidane told reporters after the game."We normally create lots of chances and though we had two ruled out today there was far, far, too little else. When we win, we win together, when we lose it's everyone's fault."Victorie! ❤️💙 pic.twitter.com/NMVYoNKyre— Idrissa Gana Gueye (@IGanaGueye) September 18, 2019
READ: How the Champions League drama unfoldedREAD: 19-year-old Håland scores hat-trick on Champions League debutOn a night where Zidane had handed a first start to Eden Hazard, his $113 million summer signing, he was left fretting over a number of different hazards altogether. Indeed, it is the first time since 2006 Real has lost its opening group game in the competition, though that will be the least of Zidane's worries.Take nothing away from PSG. This was one of its most impressive displays in the Champions League with Di Maria making a mockery of the team's injury problems.Deprived of its talented attacking trio of Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Edinson Cavani through a mixture of injury and suspension, few expected PSG to pose the kind of threat that it exhibited throughout this contest.At the heart of it all was Di Maria, once of Real, now very much a leading man for PSG. It was his two goals, the second of which featured an exquisite finish, that wrested control of the tie away from Zidane's side in the opening 45 minutes.Paris Saint-Germain's Argentine midfielder Angel Di Maria (R) celebrates scoring his team's second goal.The margin of victory could have, and indeed should have been greater, though PSG rarely appeared likely to rue those misses. Meunier's late strike did not flatter the home side. If anything, the scoreline flattered Real more.For Zidane, who was without the influential defender Sergio Ramos through suspension, this defeat brings yet more questions than answers.When he announced his decision to leave Real Madrid in May 2018, just five days after leading the club to a third consecutive Champions League title, it appeared that a chapter had been closed. Of the 149 games he presided over, he won 104 and drew 29 -- a win percentage of 69.8%. That's without even mentioning the nine trophies he won.By the time he returned, just 10 months later, the scene was almost unrecognizable.Cristiano Ronaldo had departed for Juventus, while two other coaches -- Julen Lopetegui and Santiago Solari -- had been and gone and Real ended the season 19 points adrift of eventual champion and arch rival Barcelona.Real only won five of Zidane's first 11 games in charge but his past successes earned him time and the opportunity to revamp the squad over the past summer.Paris Saint-Germain defender Thomas Meunier (L) challenges Real Madrid's Eden Hazard.Zidane spent $113 million on Hazard, one of the outstanding players in the English Premier League last season, a reported $56 million on Serbian striker Luka Jovic, and a similar amount on defender Éder Militão from Porto.And yet, for all the reshaping of the squad, something appears to be amiss.Yes, Real is unbeaten in La Liga, having won two and drawn two of its opening four games, but there is a fragility to this side that PSG exposed in rather brutal fashion.The warning signs were there on Saturday where Real, seemingly cruising at 3-0 against Levante, allowed its opponents back into the contest before clinging on for a 3-2 win.Gareth Bale's effort was ruled out for handball.
READ: Liverpool stunned by Napoli in Champions LeagueREAD: Cristiano Ronaldo comparisons 'unfair' says Benfica bossOn Saturday, it edged home. In Paris, it rarely looked like doing so. And yet, there were moments, albeit rather fleeting ones.At 2-0, Real thought it had found a way back into the contest when Gareth Bale, no stranger to the spectacular, produced a fine effort to fire over the head of Keylor Navas and into the net.Any celebrations, however, were soon cut short as VAR showed the Welshman had handled the ball.That incident rather summed up Real's night. Karim Benzema headed inches wide of the far post in the second half and also had a goal ruled out for offside, but PSG was rarely troubled. Aside from the disallowed goals, Madrid didn't manage a single shot on target.Zidane will be all too aware of the furore that will accompany this defeat. On Sunday, Real goes to Sevilla, currently top of La Liga and only too aware of the inadequacies of its opponent.Defeat there, and the noise will grow ever louder.
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(CNN)The Spanish government said Thursday it would begin the process to impose direct rule on Catalonia in an unprecedented move to crush the region's independence bid.In a statement from Madrid, the government of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said it would invoke Article 155 of the constitution, a provision that allows the central government to suspend the autonomy of the Catalan regional administration. Rajoy's Cabinet will meet on Saturday to agree measures to "restore the constitutional order" in Catalonia, where a banned referendum on independence took place earlier this month. The plan will then be put before the Senate, where Rajoy's Popular Party has a majority, for approval.The statement did not spell out what steps would be taken under Article 155, but the provision gives Madrid the power to take over the running of Catalan institutions and force new elections. It has never been invoked before.Catalan regional President Carles Puigdemont delivers a speech in Barcelona on October 15.The announcement came minutes after Catalan President Carles Puigdemont threatened that the region could formally declare independence if the Spanish government did not engage in dialogue.Read MorePuigdemont also demanded Spain end its "repression" of Catalan separatist leaders, in a letter sent shortly before a Madrid-imposed deadline for the region to drop its independence bid. Two leaders of the Catalan independence movement were taken into custody on suspicion of sedition earlier this week.Puigdemont: Madrid 'avoiding dialogue'Puigdemont had already failed to meet an earlier deadline to clarify whether his administration had officially declared independence from Spain.JUST WATCHEDCatalonia: What you need to knowReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHCatalonia: What you need to know 01:10"Despite all our efforts and our will for dialogue, the fact that your only answer is canceling our autonomy indicates that that you do not understand the problem and do not wish to talk," Puigdemont wrote Thursday.If Madrid "persists in blocking dialogue and the repression continues," the Catalan parliament reserved the right to formalize a declaration of independence that was suspended on October 10, he said.At that session, Puigdemont said that Catalonia had "earned the right" to become an independent republic in its October 1 independence referendum, which was banned by Spain's Constitutional Court. But he suspended the effects of the declaration to allow for talks.More than 2.25 million people turned out to cast their ballot in the referendum, with the regional government reporting that 90% of voters were in favor of a split from Madrid. But the turnout was low -- around 43% of the voter roll -- which Catalan officials blamed on the central government's efforts to stop the vote.Violent scenes unfolded as national police sought to prevent people from casting their ballots, leaving hundreds of people injured. Divisions exposedThe Spanish government opened sedition investigations into two Catalan separatist leaders, Jordi Sanchez and Jordi Cuixart, and the head of the Catalan police force, Josep Lluís Trapero. JUST WATCHEDCatalan leader: We want to negotiate ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHCatalan leader: We want to negotiate 00:52Sanchez and Cuixart were taken into custody earlier this week, while Trapero's passport was confiscated.Spain's prosecutor's office alleges that Sanchez and Cuixart were not only responsible for demonstrations held on September 20 and 21, but also key in planning the October 1 referendum on independence.The crisis has caused widespread uncertainty in Catalonia, a wealthy region in Spain's northeast, and prompted some companies to move their legal headquarters to other parts of Spain. It has also exposed deep divisions between those who back the separatist movement and those who wish to remain part of Spain. Many people from both sides have taken to the streets to make their views heard.Support for MadridRajoy traveled to Brussels later Thursday for an EU leaders' meeting.EU leaders have backed the Madrid government's opposition to Catalan independence and its assertion that the unfolding crisis is an internal matter for Spain."We are monitoring the situation very closely and support the position of the Spanish government which is also a cross-party position," German Chancellor Angela Merkel told reporters as she arrived in Brussels."Of course this is concerning and we hope there are solutions here which are based on the Spanish constitution."CNN's Hilary McGann, Simon Cullen and Laura Goehler contributed to this report.
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London (CNN)On one day every year, as per tradition, Britain is invaded by swarms of flying ants -- and this year, the insects arrived in such vast numbers they were seen from space. The insects swept into the south of England on Tuesday, in an invasion that -- at first glance -- seems to indicate we are living in the early stages of a disaster movie.So huge were the storms that weather radar mistook them for rain -- a far more common phenomena on the British Isles.BBC Weather presenter and meteorologist Simon King noticed the error, writing on Twitter alongside a video of the radar readings: "Flying ants!!! Swarms of them flying into the sky in S Eng are being picked up as rain on the radar image this morning...!"Flying ants!!! Swarms of them flying into the sky in S Eng are being picked up as rain on the radar image this morning...!#flyingantday #flyingants 🐜🐜🐜🐜#yuk pic.twitter.com/QGOcikqJFq— Simon King (@SimonOKing) July 17, 2019
But while the attack may seem unusual, it merely signaled the annual arrival of what has come to be known as Flying Ant Day.Read MoreMobs of the insects descend on locations around Britain on one day every summer. The creatures sweep in and take up residence on streets, green land and in the skies before disappearing hours later.The phenomena occurs because male and queen ants leave their colonies to mate when conditions are just right. And while flying ants are spotted on several days throughout the year, the vast majority pick the exact same moment to head out from their nests.It led to disruption for Britons intending to make the most of the outdoors on Tuesday and Wednesday, when the country was bathing in sunshine and warm temperatures.If you said flying ants 🐜 you were correct! ✔️We know this to be insect clutter (flying ants) based on inspection of raw reflectivity (Zdr and RhoHV) #WednesdayWisdom #FlyingAnts pic.twitter.com/8HejoLB9u5— Met Office (@metoffice) July 17, 2019
But the famous British stiff upper lip came in handy and people across the nation kept calm and carried on -- aside from some outbursts of disgust on social media. The event has been known to cause chaos at outdoor events; in recent years, players at the Wimbledon tennis championships struggled to maintain their focus as swarms descended onto Centre Court.According to the Royal Society of Biology (RSB), the vast majority of the creatures all come from the same variety of flying ants -- the black pavement ant Lasius niger.But while the annual attack may be inconvenient, it could be valuable for Britain's ecology. The insects' activity "allows for more oxygen and water to reach the roots of plants and they can even improve soil fertility and help control pests," according to the RSB.
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Story highlightsThe officers are reportedly suspected of bombing civilians, shelling RussiaThey are wrongly accused, according to Ukraine's official Ukrinform news agencyThe ongoing fighting has killed close to 1,400 people -- civilians and combatantsA Russian court authorized Friday the arrest of five Ukrainian servicemen on what the state-run RIA Novosti news agency described as suspicion of war crimes.The officers are suspected of bombing civilians in Donetsk and shelling Russian territory, the agency reported.According to Ukraine's official Ukrinform news agency, the officers are wrongly accused. Russia has denied allegations that it is supporting separatists in Ukraine and maintains it wants to see a diplomatic solution to the crisis. But U.S. and Ukrainian officials have accused Russia of saying one thing while doing another: building up troops along the border and continuing to send support to pro-Russian separatists.Earlier this month, a group of soldiers was forced to retreat to Russia after they ran out of ammunition, Ukrinform reported. Most were sent back to Kiev; however the five officers were held for the alleged shelling of Russian territory, the agency said.The ongoing fighting has killed close to 1,400 people -- civilians and combatants -- and more than 4,000 people have been wounded in eastern Ukraine since mid-April, according to U.N. officials. The battles also have forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes and seek shelter either elsewhere in Ukraine or across the border in Russia.Rebel leader resigns; militants shoot down fighter planeOpinion: Why Vladimir Putin isn't going to make peaceWhat is Putin's endgame in Ukraine?
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(CNN)The conviction of former Minnesota police officer Kim Potter in the fatal shooting of Daunte Wright would not have happened just a few years ago, according to legal experts surprised by the jury's verdict.Potter, who is White, was found guilty Thursday of first- and second-degree manslaughter in her killing of Wright when she said she mistakenly shot the 20-year-old Black man with a gun instead of a Taser. Potter, 49, had pleaded not guilty to the charges. During a police stop on April 11 in Brooklyn Center, near Minneapolis, officers learned Wright had an outstanding warrant and tried to arrest him. As Wright tried to flee the scene, Potter yelled, "Taser, Taser" and instead pulled out her gun and fatally shot him.Ex-officer Kim Potter found guilty of two counts of manslaughter for fatally shooting Daunte Wright The case unfolded at a time when the American justice system is under scrutiny over the legal disciplinary measures police officers face when they use force --whether deadly or otherwise -- against people of color, particularly Black Americans.The 12-member jury in Potter's case deliberated for about 27 hours since Monday before reaching the guilty verdict -- which surprised two legal experts who said they either expected a hung jury or mistrial altogether. Read More"Three to five years ago, this would be a full acquittal, not even a concern over a mistrial. So the fact that we are now seeing more accountability for officers -- the idea they are not above the law, that if they do the crime, they do the time," criminal defense attorney Sara Azari said Thursday after the conviction. "It's definitely not systemic change, but it is definitely a change in trend. And this is not something that would have happened earlier." Potter's defense argued at trial that her actions did not rise to the level of a crime and that the use of the Taser was reasonable. Defense attorney Earl Gray argued that Potter had the right to use deadly force -- claiming her actions shouldn't be considered reckless because she "didn't know she had a gun."Video was key in trial of Kimberly Potter, the officer who killed Daunte WrightMeanwhile, the prosecution argued Potter's fatal error was due to recklessness and negligence. Minnesota Assistant Attorney General Erin Eldridge told jurors in closing arguments that there would be no case if Potter "followed her training ... paid attention ... and considered the risk," before shooting Wright. "Accidents can still be crimes if they occur because of recklessness or culpable negligence. ... It's not a defense to the crimes charged," the prosecutor said. "I think the prosecution did a good job of separating out her behavior, her remorse, and saying we have to hold people responsible when they do something tragic when it's so unbelievably negligent," CNN legal analyst and defense attorney Mark O'Mara said. O'Mara echoed Azari's take on the conviction, saying in part, "We are finally in the days of Floyd," referring to George Floyd, a Black man whose murder by a White Minneapolis police officer in May 2020 sparked national and global protests against police brutality. "We are without question holding cops more responsible for their actions. They do not get a free pass," O'Mara told CNN's John Berman on Thursday, adding that Potter's reaction seems to stem from "implicit bias.""We now need to truly train cops and law enforcement how to rethink their perspective of young Black males," he said. "Not an easy mistake to make"The jury -- which was deadlocked at times during trial -- had access to a gun and Taser to compare their differences, and O'Mara and Azari both agree that strategy helped the prosecution land the conviction. "I do believe that the ability to compare the weapons and just see how grossly negligent she (Potter) was or criminally negligent she was given the vast differences between these two weapons," Azari said. "It's not every day an officer with 26 years of training and certification mistakes a gun for a Taser." Confusing the two weapons "was not an easy mistake to make," O'Mara noted. "It is so negligent; it is so unusual to grab a Taser and think it's a gun that that act itself evidences recklessness," O'Mara explained. Special agent Sam McGinnis of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension testified there were multiple differences between department-issued stun guns and Potter's gun. McGinnis, a state investigative agent responsible for reviewing police shootings, said his analysis of the two weapons concluded marked differences in weight. Potter's Glock handgun weighed 2.11 pounds, he testified, compared to her Taser which weighed less than a pound.The triggers on both weapons also have different shapes, McGinnis said, as the gun's is curved while the Taser's is flat.The weapons were on opposite sides of Potter's body and accessed differently, according to McGinnis. The gun's holster had a snap retention system to secure the gun in place while the Taser's holster required Potter to push a lever.The family of Daunte Wright celebrate a guilty verdict for Kim Potter outside of the Hennepin County Government Center on December 23, 2021, in Minneapolis.Family, community celebrate verdictFollowing the highly anticipated verdict, some in the community as well as Wright's family members shared their emotional sentiments. Wright's parents, Aubrey Wright and Katie Bryant, expressed sighs and cries, according to reporters."The moment we heard guilty on manslaughter one -- emotions, every single emotion that you can imagine, just running through your body. I kind of let out a yelp because it was built up in the anticipation," Bryant told reporters."This is just a step forward in the bigger issue with policing and hopefully there has to be no more Dauntes. No more Dauntes and so many more names we chant in our streets," she later told CNN. Snippets of Daunte Wright's short life emerge at Kim Potter's trialMoments after the guilty verdict, people outside the courthouse in Minneapolis held portraits of Wright as well as Black Lives Matter signs, celebrating the jury's decision.One woman told CNN's Omar Jimenez the verdict is "proof that the world can change and do better for us Black people, us minorities in this world.""That's all I want. I have a Black son growing up in this world. You can imagine my fear for him," she said. "We just need change, that's all. It should have never happened. We fought for this."Potter's conviction of the manslaughter charges brings "a degree of accountability" for Wright's killing, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said Thursday. He also addressed law enforcement officers, saying being "held accountable ... does not diminish you.""Accountability is not justice. Justice is restoration. Justice would be restoring Daunte to life and making the Wright family whole again. Justice is beyond the reach that we have in this life for Daunte. But accountability is an important step, a critical, necessary step on the road to justice for us all," Ellison said. CNN's Omar Jimenez, Josh Campbell, Topher Gauk-Roger, Ashley Killough, Carma Hassan, Kim Berryman, Brad Parks and Anna-Maja Rappard contributed to this report.
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Issac Bailey is a longtime journalist based in South Carolina and the Batten Professor of Public Policy at Davidson College. His most recent book is "Why Didn't We Riot? A Black Man in Trumpland." He's also the author of "My Brother Moochie: Regaining Dignity in the Face of Crime, Poverty and Racism in the American South." The views expressed in this commentary are his own. View more opinion on CNN. (CNN)South Carolina may be on the verge of what seemed like an impossibility: becoming the first state in US history to be represented by two Black men in the Senate simultaneously. It's no longer a far-fetched idea because Democrat Jamie Harrison has become a formidable challenger for the seat occupied by long-serving Republican Lindsey Graham. Political analysts have moved the race into a toss-up category from solidly Republican as a bevy of polls show Graham and Harrison in a virtual tie. Saturday's debate between the two, in which Harrison nailed Graham to the wall with Graham's own naked hypocrisy and lies about how he'd handle a Supreme Court nomination in the final year of President Donald Trump's term, further solidified that reality. "Be a man," Harrison said as he scolded Graham on his attempt to downplay his flip flop.Issac BaileyBecause he's the incumbent, Graham should still be considered the favorite, but only slightly. Harrison's challenge is real. Don't feel bad if you didn't anticipate that possibility. Many of us who were born and raised here and have been reporting on the politics of the Palmetto State for the past couple of decades didn't either.Don't get me wrong. This possibility was unforeseen not because Graham was considered invincible or because of our status as a deep red, Deep South state. It surely wasn't because Harrison isn't qualified or that Graham has earned another term. Harrison is and Graham hasn't. It was unforeseen because few of us anticipated Democrats from around the country making the race a priority, which is what was required to put this seat in play. But they have, by helping Harrison set fundraising records. That's why Harrison's war chest is sizable enough to swamp Graham in well-done advertisements and a robust get-out-the-vote effort.Read MoreHarrison's presence on the ballot also helps the South Carolina Democratic Party regain its luster in a state that has almost always voted for Republicans in statewide races since the late 1990s. A decade ago, the state party was a laughingstock when a man named Alvin Green — who had no political experience and no campaign apparatus to speak of — won its Senate nomination to face then-Sen. Jim DeMint, a Republican, and got thoroughly trounced at the ballot box and trashed by late-night talk show hosts. JUST WATCHED'Be a man': Harrison calls out Graham at debateReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCH'Be a man': Harrison calls out Graham at debate 02:22When I sat down with Harrison for a 30-minute interview in the early months of the race in the spring of 2019 — we met at Big Mike's, a soul food restaurant in Myrtle Beach that was also visited by the likes of Kamala Harris during the Democratic primaries — it was clear he understood the state's political landscape well. This was long before we had heard of something called Covid-19 and before President Trump was impeached. Harrison spoke eloquently about how his humble-beginnings background, elite higher education and work in the private sector and politics prepared him for this moment. He was careful to talk about holding Trump to account for his abuses of power while not becoming hyperbolic. He articulated the need for racial justice while steadfast in a conviction that we reach across the aisle and embrace everyone. He didn't serve up red meat for those who want Trump sent to prison and tried to remain focused on his qualifications and vision for the state — while explaining why it was time for Graham to go. JUST WATCHEDCuomo: Why are you surprised Graham would eat his words?ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHCuomo: Why are you surprised Graham would eat his words? 02:06Harrison did the same during his debate with Graham. Both men emphasized their ability to work across the aisle, but Harrison quickly called out Graham for calling liberals "nuts" and "radical." Harrison's decision to bring his own acrylic glass divider, to protect himself from the coronavirus and underscore the different ways Democrats and Republicans have responded to the pandemic, also stood out. (I suspect Democrats wish Joe Biden had done the same during his debate with Trump.)The truth is, though, that Harrison is capitalizing on what could amount to one of the biggest political miscalculations by an incumbent in our state over the past quarter of a century: Graham's full embrace of Trump. Apparently he believed his easiest, surest road to reelection ran through ardent Trump supporters — which is why at Saturday's debate he talked about conservative judges, capitalism vs. socialism and said Democratic control of Washington would be a "nightmare scenario." It seems as though he's disregarded the center-left and center-right residents who make up an important contingent of South Carolina voters and aren't wedded to either party. Those voters have been comfortable voting for former moderate Democrats who became moderate Republicans when the GOP began dominating state politics, like state Sen. Luke Rankin of Myrtle Beach. Get our free weekly newsletterSign up for CNN Opinion's new newsletter.Join us on Twitter and FacebookGraham, whose political career spans 25 years, knows there is a big divide between that group and the most passionate Trump voters. He knows his reputation in the state had long been one as a statesman, as much a straight-talker as his old buddy, the late Sen. John McCain. He knows a great portion of his previous support came not just from people who agreed with his conservative bona fides but those who believed he would tell the truth and put country before party at critical moments, even if it meant jeopardizing his own political future. I know because I was one of the voters who believed Graham. I no longer do. Graham is no longer that man — that's if he ever was.His image in this state is now of a man who is crude, crass and calculating. He is either playacting now to attract Trump voters or was pretending to be a man of character for all those years before Trump became president. Graham had seemed a man of conviction, of honor. It made it easier to ignore political disagreements with him because he had convinced us his desire to be in Washington was more about his love for the residents of his home state than a thirst for power. He has now decided to shatter that image into a thousand pieces — just to touch the hem of Trump's garment. That decision might cost him everything. And it should.
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The users of WordPress, a free and open source blogging tool as well as content management system (CMS), that have a popular unpatched wordPress plugin installed are being cautioned to upgrade their sites immediately.
A serious vulnerability in the WordPress plugin, MailPoet, could essentially allows an attacker to inject any file including malware, defacements and spam, whatever they wanted on the server and that too without any authentication.
MailPoet, formerly known as Wysija Newsletter, is a WordPress plugin with more than 1.7 million downloads that allows developers running WordPress to send newsletters and manage subscribers within the content management system.
In a blog post, the security researcher and CEO of the security firm Sucuri, Daniel Cid, pointed out the vulnerability to be serious and said that within three weeks since the vulnerability unveiled, over 50,000 websites have been remotely exploited by the cybercriminals to install backdoors targeting the vulnerable MailPoet plugin.
Some of those compromised websites don't even run WordPress or don't have MailPoet plugin enabled in it, as the malware can infect any website that resides on the server of a hacked WordPress website, according the researcher.
"The malware code had some bugs: it was breaking many websites, overwriting good files and appending various statements in loops at the end of files," Cid said in a blog post. "All the hacked sites were either using MailPoet or had it installed on another sites within the same shared account -- cross-contamination still matters."
"To be clear, the MailPoet vulnerability is the entry point, it doesn't mean your website has to have it enabled or that you have it on the website; if it resides on the server, in a neighbouring website, it can still affect your website."
The security firm first reported about the vulnerability on the beginning of this month. The backdoor installed is a very nasty and creates an admin account that gives attackers full administrative control. It also injects backdoor code into all themes and core files.
The worst part with this infection is that the malicious code also overwrites valid files, which are very difficult to recover without a good backup in place. It causes many websites to fall over and display the message:
Parse error: syntax error, unexpected ')' in /home/user/public_html/site/wp-config.php on line 91.
The Security firm is clarifying that every build of MailPoet is vulnerable except the only version which is the most recent released 2.6.7. So, users are recommended to update it as soon as possible.
Sucuri security firm is very dedicated in finding vulnerabilities in the WordPress CMS and encouraging users to install the updates. A week ago, it urged the users to upgrade WordPress version due to a vulnerability found in the WPtouch WordPress plugin that could potentially allow any non-administrative logged-in user to upload malicious PHP files or backdoors to the target server without any admin privileges.
Sucuri also found two serious vulnerabilities in the popular WordPress SEO plugin called "All in One SEO Pack" and a critical Remote Code Execution (RCE) flaw in "Disqus Comment System" Plugin of Wordpress few weeks before.
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DigitalOcean, one of the biggest modern web hosting platforms, recently hit with a concerning data leak incident that exposed some of its customers' data to unknown and unauthorized third parties.
Though the hosting company has not yet publicly released a statement, it did has started warning affected customers of the scope of the breach via an email.
According to the breach notification email that affected customers [1, 2] received, the data leak happened due to negligence where DigitalOcean 'unintentionally' left an internal document accessible to the Internet without requiring any password.
"This document contained your email address and/or account name (the name you gave your account at sign-up) as well as some data about your account that may have included Droplet count, bandwidth usage, some support or sales communications notes, and the amount you paid during 2018," the company said in the warning email as shown below.
Upon discovery, a quick digital investigation revealed that the exposed file containing customers' data was accessed by unauthorized third parties at least 15 times before the document was finally taken down.
"Our community is built on trust, so we are taking steps to make sure this doesn't happen again. We will be educating our employees on protecting customer data, establishing new procedures to alert us of potential exposures in a more timely manner, and making configuration changes to prevent future data exposure," the company added.
To be noted, this specific breach neither indicates the DigitalOcean website was compromised, nor the customers' login credentials were leaked to the attackers.
So, if you have an account with the hosting service, you don't have to rush into changing your password. However, the service also offers two-factor authentication that every user must enable to add an extra layer of security to their accounts.
The Hacker New has reached out to DigitalOcean for a comment, and the story will be updated with the response.
Update — A spokesperson for the company confirmed The Hacker News of the incident and shared a statement:
"We had a document that was discovered to be shared publicly and while we feel confident there was no malicious access to that document, we informed our customers regardless for transparency. Less than 1% of our customer base was impacted, and the only PII included in the file was account name and email address.
"This was not related to a malicious act to access our systems. Our customers trust us with their data and we believe that an unintended use of that data, no matter how small, is reason enough to be transparent."
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The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has disclosed details of a new advanced persistent threat (APT) that's leveraging the Supernova backdoor to compromise SolarWinds Orion installations after gaining access to the network through a connection to a Pulse Secure VPN device.
"The threat actor connected to the entity's network via a Pulse Secure virtual private network (VPN) appliance, moved laterally to its SolarWinds Orion server, installed malware referred to by security researchers as SUPERNOVA (a .NET web shell), and collected credentials," the agency said on Thursday.
CISA said it identified the threat actor during an incident response engagement at an unnamed organization and found that the attacker had access to the enterprise's network for nearly a year through the use of the VPN credentials between March 2020 and February 2021.
Interestingly, the adversary is said to have used valid accounts that had multi-factor authentication (MFA) enabled, rather than an exploit for a vulnerability, to connect to the VPN, thus allowing them to masquerade as legitimate teleworking employees of the affected entity.
In December 2020, Microsoft disclosed that a second espionage group may have been abusing the IT infrastructure provider's Orion software to drop a persistent backdoor called Supernova on target systems. The intrusions have since been attributed to a China-linked threat actor called Spiral.
Unlike Sunburst and other pieces of malware that have been connected to the SolarWinds compromise, Supernova is a .NET web shell implemented by modifying an "app_web_logoimagehandler.ashx.b6031896.dll" module of the SolarWinds Orion application. The modifications were made possible by leveraging an authentication bypass vulnerability in the Orion API tracked as CVE-2020-10148, in turn permitting a remote attacker to execute unauthenticated API commands.
An investigation into the incident is ongoing. In the meantime, CISA is recommending organizations to implement MFA for privileged accounts, enable firewalls to filter unsolicited connection requests, enforce strong password policies, and secure Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) and other remote access solutions.
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Even after so many efforts by Google for making its Play Store away from malware, shady apps somehow managed to fool its anti-malware protections and infect people with malicious software.
A team of researchers from several security firms has uncovered two new malware campaigns targeting Google Play Store users, of which one spreads a new version of BankBot, a persistent family of banking Trojan that imitates real banking applications in efforts to steal users' login details.
BankBot has been designed to display fake overlays on legitimate bank apps from major banks around the world, including Citibank, WellsFargo, Chase, and DiBa, to steal sensitive information, including logins and credit card details.
With its primary purpose of displaying fake overlays, BankBot has the ability to perform a broad range of tasks, such as sending and intercepting SMS messages, making calls, tracking infected devices, and stealing contacts.
Google removed at least four previous versions of this banking trojan from its official Android app store platform earlier this year, but BankBot apps always made their ways to Play Store, targeting victims from major banks around the world.
The second campaign spotted by researchers not only spreads the same BankBot trojan as the first campaign but also Mazar and Red Alert. This campaign has been described in detail on ESET blog.
According to an analysis performed by the mobile threat intelligence team at Avast in collaboration with ESET and SfyLabs, the latest variant of BankBot has been hiding in Android apps that pose as supposedly trustworthy, innocent-looking flashlight apps.
First spotted by the researchers on 13 October, the malicious BankBot apps uses special techniques to circumvent Google's automated detection checks, such as starting malicious activities 2 hours after the user gave device admin rights to the app and publishing the apps under different developer names.
After tricking victims into downloading them, the malicious apps check for the applications that are installed on the infected device against a hard-coded, list of 160 mobile apps.
According to the researchers, this list includes apps from Wells Fargo and Chase in the U.S., Credit Agricole in France, Santander in Spain, Commerzbank in Germany and many other financial institutions from around the world.
If it finds one or more apps on the infected smartphone, the malware downloads and installs the BankBot APK from its command-and-control server on the device, and tries to trick the victim into giving it administrator rights by pretending to be a Play Store or system update using a similar icon and package name.
Once it gets the admin privileges, the BankBot app displays overlay on the top of legitimate apps whenever victims launch one of the apps from the malware's list and steal whatever banking info the victim's types on it.
The Avast Threat Labs has also provided a video demonstration while testing this mechanism with the app of the local Czech Airbank. You can see how the app creates an overlay within milliseconds and tricks the user into giving out their bank details to criminals.
Since many banks use two-factor-authentication methods for secure transactions, BankBot includes functionality that allows it to intercept text messages, allowing criminals behind BankBot to steal mobile transaction number (mTAN) sent to the customer's phone and transfer money to their accounts.
Here's one important thing to note is that Android mechanism blocks apps installation from outside the Play Store. Even if you have already permitted installation from unknown sources, Google still requires you to press a button to continue such installations.
"Unlike this newer version of BankBot, droppers from previous campaigns were far more sophisticated," the researchers note. "They applied techniques such as performing clicks in the background via an Accessibility Service to enable the installation from unknown sources."
The latest BankBot version does not utilize this Accessibility Service feature due to Google's recent move of blocking this feature for all applications, except those designed to provide services for the blind.
Google has already removed all recently-discovered BankBot apps after being notified by the researchers.
Although it is a never-ending concern, the best way to protect yourself is always to be vigilant when downloading apps even from Google's official Play store. So, always verify app permissions and reviews before downloading an app from Google Play Store.
Even though the BankBot apps made it way into the Play Store, its payload was downloaded from an external source. So, don't allow any unknown third-party APK to be installed on your smartphone.
To do so, Go to Settings → Security and then Turn OFF "Allow installation of apps from sources other than the Play Store."
Most importantly, be careful which apps you give administrative rights to, as it is powerful and can provide a full app control of your device.
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A Middle Eastern advanced persistent threat (APT) group has resurfaced after a two-month hiatus to target government institutions in the Middle East and global government entities associated with geopolitics in the region in a rash of new campaigns observed earlier this month.
Sunnyvale-based enterprise security firm Proofpoint attributed the activity to a politically motivated threat actor it tracks as TA402, and known by other monikers such as Molerats and GazaHackerTeam.
Based on its targeting and previous campaigns, TA402 is alleged to operate with motives that align with military or Palestinian state objectives. The threat actor is believed to be active for a decade, with a history of striking organizations primarily located in Israel and Palestine, and spanning multiple verticals such as technology, telecommunications, finance, academia, military, media, and governments.
It's not clear what prompted the collective to cease its operations for two months, but Proofpoint researchers speculated that either the holy month of Ramadan or the current flare-ups in the region and the ensuing violence in May may have played a part.
The latest wave of attacks commenced with spear-phishing emails written in Arabic and containing PDF attachments that come embedded with a malicious geofenced URL to selectively direct victims to a password-protected archive only if the source IP address belongs to the targeted countries in the Middle East.
Recipients who fall outside of the target group are diverted to a benign decoy website, typically Arabic language news websites like Al Akhbar (www.al-akhbar.com) and Al Jazeera (www.aljazeera.net).
"The password protection of the malicious archive and the geofenced delivery method are two easy anti-detection mechanisms threat actors can use to bypass automatic analysis products," the researchers said.
The last step in the infection chain involved extracting the archive to drop a custom implant called LastConn, which Proofpoint said is an upgraded or new version of a backdoor called SharpStage that was disclosed by Cybereason researchers in December 2020 as part of a Molerats espionage campaign targeting the Middle East.
Besides displaying a decoy document when LastConn is run for the first time, the malware relies heavily on Dropbox API to download and execute files hosted on the cloud service, in addition to running arbitrary commands and capturing screenshots, the results of which are subsequently exfiltrated back to Dropbox.
If anything, the ever-evolving toolset of TA402 underscores the group's continued focus on developing and modifying customized malware implants in an attempt to sneak past defenses and thwart detection.
"TA402 is a highly effective and capable threat actor that remains a serious threat, especially to entities operating in and working with government or other geopolitical entities in the Middle East," the researchers concluded. "It is likely TA402 continues its targeting largely focused on the Middle East region."
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Story highlightsErnesto Valverde new Barcleona head coachTakes over from Luis Enrique at Nou CampValverde most recently in charge of Athletic Bilbao (CNN)Barcelona has appointed former Athletic Bilbao, Valencia and Espanyol boss Ernesto Valverde as its new head coach.He had been widely expected to take over at Barca from the departing Luis Enrique.The 53-year-old played for Barcelona as a striker, scoring eight goals in 22 appearances between 1988 and 1990 under the guidance of the legendary Johan Cruyff.Valverde announced he would be leaving Athletic last week after four years in charge at the Basque club. At a press conference, Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu said the club had appointed Valverde for "many reasons."Read More"Valverde has the ability, the judgment, the knowledge and the experience," he said. "He promotes the youth players and he has a Barca way. He has a philosophy that is similar to ours. He is a hard worker and he is a fan of using technology in training and in managing matches."Valverde will be officially unveiled before the media Thursday. JUST WATCHEDXavi hails Barca's 1992 Dream TeamReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHXavi hails Barca's 1992 Dream Team 01:54Adeu, LuisEnrique secured nine out of a potential 13 trophies during a fruitful three years in charge at the Nou Camp, including two La Liga titles and the 2015 Champions League crown.Yet although the Blaugrana secured a third straight Copa Del Rey title with a 3-1 victory over Alaves on Saturday, it has suffered a disappointing season by its own high standards.Barca finished second in La Liga behind arch rival Real Madrid and exited the Champions League at the quarterfinal stage after being outclassed by Juventus.The match that changed footballEnrique announced in March that he would be leaving Barcelona.Speaking to the Barcelona website after the Copa Del Rey victory Saturday, Enrique said: "I feel happy because I have enjoyed a lot making Barca fans happy by winning trophies and that makes me proud. "I am the one who has decided to stop because it will be the best for me and for the players, they need potent and intense stimulus. Nine trophies out of 13 is a pretty good record."JUST WATCHEDXavi hails Barca's 1992 Dream TeamReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCH (9 Videos)Xavi hails Barca's 1992 Dream TeamXavi: I'm open to managing Qatar in 2022Barcelona legend Xavi reveals Ultimate PlayerTer Stegen: 'Messi is the greatest ever'Pep Guardiola: 'No bigger title than to follow Cruyff legacy'The business behind GuardiolaMeet the Iranian Messi dopplegangerGuardiola to end Barcelona reign Barcelona: A guide to the Catalan city READ: My dream is to coach Barcelona - Xavi READ: Xavi unveils ultimate player READ: 'Messi is the greatest ever'Trophy demandsValverde has enjoyed success as a manager.He took Barca's crosstown rivals Espanyol to an unlikely UEFA Cup final in 2007 only to lose on penalties to Sevilla.Meet the Lionel Messi doppelgangerIs Valverde the right man for Barcelona? Have your say on our Facebook pageAs manager of Olympiakos, Valverde won the Greek Superleague title in 2009, 2011 and 2012, as well as the Greek Cup in 2009 and 2012.His most recent silverware was won when Athletic defeated Enrique's Barcelona 5-1 over two legs to claim the 2016 Spanish Supercopa.Yet Valverde, who has also coached at Valencia and Villarreal over his 15-year managerial career, will be expected to challenge for honors immediately at a demanding Barca.Visit cnn.com/sport for more news and videosHis first chance will come when Barca faces Real Madrid in the Spanish Supercopa in August.
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Story highlightsWorld No. 1 playing in first match since winning Wimbledon Djokovic's three-set win sets up meeting with Jo-Wilfried TsongaSerena Williams through to third round at WTA event in Montreal Defending champion a straight-sets winner over Sam Stosur Some players might not have wanted too much court time in their first match back after a layoff, but Novak Djokovic didn't appear to mind being pushed to the limits by Gael Monfils at the Rogers Cup in Toronto. The world No. 1, who was playing for the first time since winning Wimbledon last month, was taken all the way by the Frenchman in their second-round match before eventually prevailing 6-2 6-7 (7-4) 7-6 (7-2) in two hours 41 minutes."In a way it was fun, of course, and entertaining to be part of this match," Djokovic said, the ATP Tour official website reported. "I enjoyed it. I tried to take the positives from this long match, and those are obviously the fact that I stayed over two and a half hours on the court and I have not played an official hard-court match since the Miami final. "That helps obviously to play a little bit more, to feel the court, to feel the conditions."JUST WATCHEDCapturing iconic tennis photographsReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHCapturing iconic tennis photographs 03:48JUST WATCHEDHow Novak and Petra conquered WimbledonReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHHow Novak and Petra conquered Wimbledon 08:12JUST WATCHEDTennis' love matchReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHTennis' love match 02:23Djokovic has now won all 10 of his meetings with Monfils and will face another Frenchman, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the third round. Tsonga will be the fresher of the two after seeing off his countryman Jeremy Chardy 7-6(8/6) 6-4 in one hour and 37 minutes. Djokovic has a 13-5 head-to-head record against Tsonga and has won their last nine meetings, most recently in the fourth round at Wimbledon. But he is still wary of the threat posed by the 13th seed. "My next opponent has a very similar game, power game like Gael's," Djokovic said. "I'm not feeling tired, I'm not exhausted, I haven't played a tournament for four weeks. I of course look forward to compete more."Djokovic was joined in the third round by two-time Rogers Cup winner Andy Murray, who crushed Australian teenager Nick Kyrgios 6-2 6-2 in less than an hour to set up a clash with France's Richard Gasquet.Wimbledon semifinalist Grigor Dimitrov was taken to three sets by American Donald Young before progressing to a clash with Spanish 17th seed Tommy Robredo.Last year's losing finalist Milos Raonic kept home hopes alive by overcoming young American Jack Sock 4-6 7-6 (7-2) 7-6 (7-4) after two hours and 24 minutes.Canada's world No. 6, who won his sixth ATP Tour title in Washington last weekend, will next play French veteran Julien Benneteau.Fourth seed Tomas Berdych and No. 5 David Ferrer also went through, while Marin Cilic set up a meeting with Wimbledon finalist Roger Federer -- who is seeking to add to his 2004 and 2006 Rogers Cup titles.Serena eases into third round Meanwhile in Montreal, world No. 1 Serena Williams was in ominous form in her second-round Rogers Cup match against Sam Stosur. The defending champion blew away the Australian in straight sets 6-0 6-2 in just under an hour to set up a meeting with Czech Lucie Safarova, who overcame Magdalena Rybarikova 6-4, 6-2. "It feels great to be here," Williams said, speaking in French, the WTA's official website reported. JUST WATCHEDThe grass court season growsReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHThe grass court season grows 03:39JUST WATCHEDInside Andy Murray's luxury hotelReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHInside Andy Murray's luxury hotel 05:46JUST WATCHEDRomanian's meteoric riseReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHRomanian's meteoric rise 01:10"I thought I played well tonight. She's won a Grand Slam title and she's a really good player, so it was important for me to play well."I love it here and I want to thank everyone for coming out tonight."Serena's sister Venus is also safely through to the next round after beating Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan 6-3 6-2. She will next play Angelique Kerber, who was beaten by Serena in the Stanford final on Sunday.Fourth seed Maria Sharapova went through to round three despite losing the first set against 27th-ranked Garbine Muguruza, and the Russian will next play another SPaniard in Carla Suarez-Navarro.Second seed and 2012 Rogers Cup winner Petra Kvitova also progressed with a 6-3 6-2 win over Casey Dellacqua, and the two-time Wimbledon champion next plays Russia's Ekaterina Makarova. But No. 9 seed Ana Ivanovic is out after losing 6-7 (9-7) 7-6 (9-7) 6-4 to America's Coco Vandeweghe, who earned a clash with another Serbian, former world No. 1 Jelena Jankovic. Australian Open finalist Dominika Cibulkova was also knocked out, going down in three sets 2-6 7-6 (7-3) 6-7 (5-7) to Britain's Heather Watson, who will now play two-time grand slam winner Victoria Azarenka. Read more: Bouchard suffers hometown defeat
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Story highlightsRafael Benitez appointed as new coach of Italian team NapoliBenitez takes over from previous coach Walter MazzarriSpain's Benitez was manager of Chelsea for the final six months of last seasonBenitez led Chelsea to Europa League triumph a fortnight agoTwo weeks after leading Chelsea to glory in the Europa League, Rafael Benitez has been unveiled as the new coach of Italian team Napoli.Benitez guided Chelsea to a 2-1 victory over Benfica in Amsterdam earlier this month having been appointed as the team's interim manager following the sacking of Roberto Di Matteo in November.The former Liverpool and Valencia boss moves to Naples on a two-year deal as a replacement for Walter Mazzarri, who has taken over at Inter Milan following the sacking of Andrea Stramaccioni.Mazzarri's Napoli finished the 2012-13 campaign second in Italy's top division, securing the team a place in next season's European Champions League. It was the club's best finish in the league since winning Serie A in 1990.Read: U.S. soccer market now taken seriously"Now that the agreement is confirmed, I can say I am very happy and very satisfied for having committed to a great club with an illustrious heritage like Napoli," the 53-year-old Benitez told his official website. Photos: Chelsea triumphs in Amsterdam Photos: Chelsea triumphs in AmsterdamTrophy time – The Europa League trophy -- that's what it was all about for Benfica and Chelsea as they went head to head at the Amsterdam Arena.Hide Caption 1 of 9 Photos: Chelsea triumphs in AmsterdamUp for the fight – Frank Lampard and David Luiz watch on Rodrigo wins control of the ball for Benfica. The Portuguese side dominated the opening half but failed to find a breakthrough.Hide Caption 2 of 9 Photos: Chelsea triumphs in AmsterdamHeads up – Chelsea spent much of the first half on the back foot with its defense constantly repelling Benfica's forceful attacks.Hide Caption 3 of 9 Photos: Chelsea triumphs in AmsterdamSo near, so far – Benfica continued to dominate after the break and Oscar Cardozo thought he had headed his side in front only to be ruled offside. The Paraguay striker met Nicolas Gaitan's cross and nodded past Petr Cech, but the assistant referee's flag denied him the opener.Hide Caption 4 of 9 Photos: Chelsea triumphs in AmsterdamFernando on fire – Despite being under the cosh for much of the game, it was Chelsea which broke the deadlock on 59 minutes when Fernando Torres raced clear to fire home in style.Hide Caption 5 of 9 Photos: Chelsea triumphs in AmsterdamBolt from the blue – Torres then pulled off his best impression of Usain Bolt as the Chelsea players began to celebrate.Hide Caption 6 of 9 Photos: Chelsea triumphs in AmsterdamSpot on – Benfica hit back with 22 minutes remaining when Cardozo netted from the penalty spot after Cesar Azpilicueta had handled inside the penalty area. Hide Caption 7 of 9 Photos: Chelsea triumphs in AmsterdamRising high – But with the game looking set for extra time, Branislav Ivanovic popped up at the death to head a dramatic winner and secure victory for Chelsea.Hide Caption 8 of 9 Photos: Chelsea triumphs in AmsterdamParty time – One year on from winning the Champions League, Chelsea's players celebrate with the Europa League trophy.Hide Caption 9 of 9 Photos: Germany: The new cool Photos: Germany: The new coolKlopp the philosopher – Borussia Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp has won plaudits for his intelligent musings on football. "You can speak about spirit -- or you can live it," he told the Guardian newspaper this week.Hide Caption 1 of 9 Photos: Germany: The new coolBratwurst bonus – The Bratwurst, a traditional German sausage, is renowned all over the world and is a big favorite with football fans.Hide Caption 2 of 9 Photos: Germany: The new coolBeer o'clock – Kim Kardashian is just one of a whole host of celebrities to have visited Munich's Oktoberfest -- a beer festival which is held in the city every year.Hide Caption 3 of 9 Photos: Germany: The new coolMerry Merkel – German Chancellor Angela Merkel is a huge football fan and will be a keen spectator at the Champions League final.Hide Caption 4 of 9 Photos: Germany: The new coolStunning Sudtribune – While Dortmund's players have produced on the pitch, its fans have done likewise in the stands with a number of outstanding montages on the famous Sudtribune terrace.Hide Caption 5 of 9 Photos: Germany: The new coolNew generation – Mesut Ozil and Sami Khedira have become an integral part of Germany's new multicultural team under manager Joachim Low. The pair have established themselves as stars on the world stage with the national team and Spanish club side Real Madrid.Hide Caption 6 of 9 Photos: Germany: The new coolBecker backs change – Six-time grand slam tennis champion Boris Becker, who once sat on the Bayern board, believes hosting the 2006 World Cup transformed his country's image.Hide Caption 7 of 9 Photos: Germany: The new coolVictorious Vettel – Sebastian Vettel, Formula One's treble world champion, is one of Germany's most famous faces and is revered across the sporting world.Hide Caption 8 of 9 Photos: Germany: The new coolWaltz the winner – Christoph Waltz has become a leading name in Hollywood since winning an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in Quentin Tarantino's film "Django Unchained." Waltz is the son of a German father and Austrian mother.Hide Caption 9 of 9JUST WATCHEDPlatini: Bundesliga raises the barReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHPlatini: Bundesliga raises the bar 05:05"I understand the history of the city and how the club forms a fundamental part of the culture and traditions of Naples. "I must confess that I am extremely excited because I can share my passion for football with the fans of Napoli; it is proven that they are very, very special."Napoli president Aurelio de Laurentiis tweeted a picture of himself shaking Benitez's hand, and wrote: "Rafa Benítez is the new coach of Napoli. A great man with international experience. A leader."Benitez endured a difficult time at Stamford Bridge.Read: Robben to the rescue for Bayern Chelsea fans refused to accept him as a result of a rivalry he had had with the club while manager of Liverpool between 2004 and 2010 despite the club qualifying for the Champions League and winning the Europa League.The Spanish coach's first job at Napoli will be attempting to keep hold of star striker Edinson Cavani who is reportedly a target for Benitez's former employers Chelsea and Manchester City.Chelsea's Europa League triumph was the latest in a long list of major honors won by Benitez.The Madrid native won the same tournament -- then known as the UEFA Cup -- with Valencia in 2004, as well as two Spanish league titles.He then moved to Liverpool where he won the FA Cup in 2006, but the crowning moment of his career to date arrived a year earlier when he led the Anfield club to Champions League glory.Losing 3-0 to AC Milan at half time in the 2005 final, Liverpool scored three second-half goals before going on to seal a dramatic penalty shootout victory in Istanbul. Liverpool also reached the 2007 Champions League final.Benitez parted company with Liverpool in June 2010 before taking over at Inter just one week later.His spell at Inter Milan was mixed. Benitez won the FIFA World Club Cup with Inter before being sacked in December 2010.Fitness coach Francisco de Miguel Moreno and goalkeeping coach Vicente Javier Valero Berchili, who were both part of Benitez's backroom team at Liverpool, Inter Milan and Chelsea will join the Spaniard at Napoli.
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Story highlightsHIV killed more than 14,000 people by the end of the 1980sThe public panicked, not knowing how it spread The LGBT community often had to fill in gaps in care as so many gay men died and others were isolated (CNN)In the 1980s, when Dr. Jesse Peel was in his 40s, he realized something startling: The gay community organizer and psychiatrist in Atlanta had lost more of his contemporaries than his aging mother at the time. It was the height of the AIDS epidemic. Peel said he would sometimes attend two or three funerals for friends in a week. People were getting sick, deathly sick, long before the disease even had a name. Quiz: How well do you know the '80s?His journals from the time capture this loss and hint at fear people had of the disease and of his community. Not knowing how it spread, people in the 1980s worried that they'd get sick from holding hands or catch the disease from a public toilet seat. There were no tests and no real treatments. The disease struck so many young men so quickly, and it seemed to target the gay community, so much that its first name was gay-related immune deficiency. Some just called it "gay cancer."Hollywood's struggle to deal with AIDS in the '80sPeel's journal also documents his growing desire to be an activist. In the 1980s, people were so afraid of the disease, nurses refused to take in meals to hospitalized patients. Doctors in major medical journals debated whether they had a moral obligation to treat people with AIDS. Parents refused to see their sick children, and faith communities called patients with HIV an "abomination." Peel and others like him helped start organizations that would fill in the gaps of care.Read MorePeel donated his journals to a special collection at the Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library at Emory University in Atlanta. The collection of personal papers and mementos from the AIDS movement, part of a broader LGBT collection, gives readers an intimate glimpse of the epidemic as it unfolded and as the LGBT movement gained momentum.Timeline: AIDS moments to rememberSan Francisco and New York will always be inextricably linked to the early AIDS movement, but people in Atlanta also played a unique role, one that's often overlooked. The city is home to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which, in 1981, first documented what was then a mysterious disease. Some members of the Reagan administration famously refused to even mention the word AIDS until 1985, and by then, the epidemic was too big to ignore, with 15,948 cases. It was the CDC that created a hotline to answer scared people's questions. The agency tracked case numbers and developed research to better understand the virus.HIV in the '80s: 'People didn't want to kiss you on the cheek'In 1989, Atlanta-based Nexus Press hosted what is believed to be the first art exhibition in the United States to focus solely on AIDS. It was an Atlanta theater that, in 1984, staged what is thought to be the first AIDS-themed play, "Warren." Rebecca Ranson's original manuscript, which is housed at the Emory archive, tells a story about her friend who was dying from the disease and how she, a lesbian, and other friends tried to help. The play was performed throughout the country and at the CDC's first International conference about AIDS held in Atlanta in 1985. It aimed to educate a broader public that might have had little firsthand experience with the epidemic. The program lists AIDS organizations and their phone numbers on the back. And it was an Atlantan who was at the heart of the gay rights case Bowers v. Hardwick. An officer arrested Michael Hardwick for sodomy after the officer observed Hardwick having sex with another man in his own bedroom. The 1986 U.S. Supreme Court decision declared Georgia laws that prohibited sodomy constitutional. In 2003, the Supreme Court reversed that decision. Hardwick died in 1991 due to complications from AIDS.Anger over the case inspired some in the local community to get more involved in organizing public protests such as the 1987 National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights. The march was attended by more than 200,000 and was the largest of its kind at the time. The program from the march, also housed at the archive, calls for a national response to increase funding for AIDS research and asks for an end to discrimination against people living with HIV and AIDS. Some of the local organizers pictured in the program would later become a part of the city's political establishment.Join the conversationSee the latest news and share your comments with CNN Health on Facebook and Twitter.Peel said AIDS in the 1980s changed Atlanta. The city was always a magnet for LGBT individuals who left their smaller towns for the more liberated city, but before the epidemic, "for many guys, it was all about sex, drugs, and rock and roll," it wasn't about being a part of a broader civil rights movement, Peel told an interviewer. The disease and the public's reaction to it changed that."We didn't have a gay center then or much in the way of gay organizations. We had to make them up as we went along, and people came together to take care of their friends who were sick and dying," he said. "As the epidemic unfolded, it began to bring people together."
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Immunity Debugger v1.82 latest version download !
"Immunity Debugger is a powerful new way to write exploits, analyze malware, and reverse engineer binary files. It builds on a solid user interface with function graphing, the industry's first heap analysis tool built specifically for heap creation, and a large and well supported Python API for easy extensibility."
This is the change log:
Better handling of breakpoints.
Fix thread suspend issues while handling breakpoints.
Reintroduced the python shell.
Updated Python to 2.7.1
Fixed python tracebacks to work again.
Download the Immunity Debugger v1.82
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The makers of ultra secure BlackPhone titled by Silent Circle as, "world's first Smartphone which places privacy and control directly in the hands of its users," have recently fixed a critical vulnerability in the instant messaging application that allows hackers to run malicious code on the handsets.
BlackPhone was also hacked last year at the BlackHat security conference, but the interesting factor about the recent hack was that the attackers only needed to send just a message on a targeted phone number in order to compromise the device.
The vulnerability was first discovered and disclosed by Mark Dowd, a principal security researcher at the Australia-based consultancy firm Azimuth Security. Dowd discovered the issue late in 2014, but waited to disclose it until Blackphone got their patches and fixes in place.
The flaw actually resides in Silent Text application — the secure text messaging application bundled with the BlackPhone handsets, which is also freely available as Android App on Google Play Store.
Exploiting the vulnerability would have allowed hackers to perform following tasks:
Decrypt messages and read messages
Read and steal contacts
Monitor geographic locations of the phone
Write code or text to the phone's external storage
Enumerate the accounts stored on the device
"Successful exploitation can yield remote code execution with the privileges of the Silent Text application, which runs as a regular Android app, but with some additional system privileges required to perform its SMS-like functionality such as access to contacts, access to location information, the ability to write to external storage, and of course net access," Dowd said.
The vulnerability occurred due to a component known as libscimp — the BlackPhone implementation of the Silent Circle Instant Messaging Protocol (SCIMP) which runs on the Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP) — that contained a type of memory corruption flaw known as a type confusion vulnerability.
SCIMP is used by the creators of BlackPhone in an effort to create a secure end-to-end encryption channel between people sending text messages. It also handles the transportation of the encrypted data through the channel.
Now, this SCIMP implementation supplied with SilentText contains a type confusion vulnerability, typically allowing attackers to "directly overwrite a pointer in memory (either partially or in full), which when successfully exploited can be used to gain remote, unauthenticated access to the vulnerable device."
Dowd has given a solid technical description on his blog, so you may refer his blog post for more detailed explanation about the critical vulnerability.
The vulnerability has since been patched, but it is a powerful reminder for those who, no doubt, did a lot of things right to provide strong encryption to its users, but in this era of more complex software and advanced hacking, there is no such guarantee that your product can not be hacked.
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(CNN)A grand jury has been empaneled to investigate the fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Kentucky, two people close to the process told CNN. The grand jury, which was empaneled this week, "will be hearing other criminal cases first to get their feet wet with the process and then hear the Taylor case," a source close to the investigation told CNN on Wednesday.Taylor, a 26-year-old EMT and aspiring nurse, was fatally shot after police broke down the door to her apartment while executing a late-night "no-knock" warrant in a narcotics investigation on March 13. Breonna Taylor had big plans before police knocked down her door in deadly raidNone of the police officers involved in the flawed raid have been charged with a crime. One officer involved was fired in late June, more than three months after the shooting.The source told CNN that the grand jury is meeting at an alternate location because of safety concerns due to ongoing protests in Jefferson Square Park, which has been informally renamed as "Breonna Taylor Park."Read MoreThe grand jury is expected to eventually decide the fate of three officers who opened fire during the incident. Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, who is leading the investigation into Taylor's death, tweeted Wednesday that "conflicting rumors and reports" circulating on a daily basis about the investigation don't do anything to "advance justice.""My office is continually asked about a timeline regarding the investigation into the death of Ms. Breonna Taylor. An investigation, if done properly, cannot follow a specific timeline," Cameron tweeted."When the investigation concludes and a decision is made, we will provide an update about an announcement," Cameron wrote. "The news will come from our office and not unnamed sources. Until that time, the investigation remains ongoing."A representative for Taylor's family said the attorney general had previewed the grand jury process during a meeting with the family last month."On August 12, at the meeting with Tamika Palmer's family and her lawyers with Cameron's office, Cameron told the family that once the FBI ballistic come back and they do re-interviews with witnesses that his office will put the case in front of Jefferson County grand jury," said Christopher 2X, a community activist who is assisting Taylor's mother Tamika Palmer.Lonita Baker, an attorney representing the Taylor family in a wrongful-death lawsuit, said she has not been contacted by the attorney general's office regarding the grand jury process.Taylor was killed in the barrage of shots from the three officers, Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly and officers Brett Hankison and Myles Cosgrove.Mattingly's attorney, Todd McMurtry, has previously defended his client's conduct."Sgt. Mattingly was following orders of superior officers, was not involved in the planning process of the arrest, and at all times followed established police procedures," McMurtry said. CNN has reached out to the attorneys for Cosgrove and Hankison for comment.CNN's Nicole Chavez contributed to this report.
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Security expert Ebrahim Hegazy has found a Password disclosure vulnerability in Barracuda update servers which allows to gain access to employee credentials.
The Egyptian information security advisor Ebrahim Hegazy(@Zigoo0) has found a Password disclosure vulnerability in one of Barracuda update servers which allows the attackers to gain access to all its employee data.
When the system administrator needs to protect a directory with a second authentication layer (basic authentication) besides the back-end authentication, he can do it with multiple methods, one of that methods is through the configuration of .htaccess and .htpasswd files. A proper configuration could prevent a visitor to surf reserved area (e.g /Cpanel or /admin), in this scenario a popup proposes to the user asking to enter authentication credentials, that credentials are saved inside .htpasswd file as:
Username:Password
In normal scenarios the .htpasswd file should be stored outside the web directory (e.g. C:\AnyName\.htpasswd)
But in Barracuda issue the file was stored inside the admin panel directory and was accessible by anyone with serious repercussion.
If the user directly accesses the following link https://updates.cudasvc.com/admin/.htpasswd ,he will be able to disclose the passwords of all Barracuda Network Employees such as: Support, Sales, UK Branch employees, Update server users, Engineers and more of those who have access to the basic authentication layer!
The Password disclosure vulnerability is exacerbated by the fact that the passwords were saved as a clear text, following the screenshots before the vulnerability got patched
The vulnerability has been reported by Ebrahim Hegazy to Barracuda, that already fixed it, despite it is not eligible for the bounty. Curious that Barracuda considered "Password disclosure vulnerability" out of scope vulnerability, IMHO I consider it a critical flaw.
Ebrahim Hegazy has found and reported the vulnerability to Barracuda as a participant in the Barracuda bug bounty program.
I consider Ebrahim Hegazy a very skilled professional that is doing an excellent job in security field, let's remind that in the last months he already discovered flaws in DropBox, Avira web site and Yahoo! ... What is the next?
What will happen if these smart guys will start to sell the knowledge of vulnerabilities in the underground?
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Editor's note: This is the second of two stories on the religious beliefs of the presidential nominees. Read about the faith of Donald Trump here. (CNN)At a Catholic charity event this month, Hillary Clinton, a onetime Sunday school teacher, made a small but telling theological slip-up. After trading jokes with her Republican rival, Donald Trump, at the Al Smith dinner in New York, Clinton got serious, praising her Catholic hosts and Pope Francis' fights against climate change and inequality. "I'm not Catholic. I'm a Methodist," Clinton said. "But one of the things that we share is the belief that in order to achieve salvation we need both faith and good works."That's only half-true. Neither the United Methodist Church nor the Catholic Church teach that believers can work their way into heaven. Good deeds are important, both churches agree, but God's grace is freely given -- and the only means of salvation. Clinton likely knows this. She's correctly stated the doctrine before, including at a church service in Washington last year. Read MoreMaybe her salvation stumble was the work of a sloppy speechwriter -- or perhaps, with apologies to Freud, it was a Pelagian slip. (Pelagius was a monk accused of teaching the heresy that humans could earn their own salvation.) Either way, Clinton's remark revealed a deep strain in her religious thought: There are no freeloaders in heaven. "She didn't believe it was how high you jumped for joy in church," said the Rev. Ed Matthews, Clinton's pastor when she lived in Little Rock, Arkansas, in the 1990s, "but what you did when you came down." The conventional Washington wisdom holds that Clinton is reluctant to talk about her faith, which is partly true. She doesn't often divulge details about her private piety, even while hinting that prayer and pastoral counseling have led her to consequential decisions, such as remaining with her husband, Bill, after the Monica Lewinsky scandal in 1998. But during her three decades in politics, Clinton has been quite willing to talk about how her work has been inspired by her Methodist faith. She traces some of her political positions, particularly concerning children and the poor, directly to Christ's commandment to care for "the least of these." Speaking to an assembly of Methodist women in 2014, Clinton cited the Gospel story of Jesus multiplying the loaves and fishes to feed a hungry crowd. "He was teaching about the responsibility we all share, to step up and serve the community, especially to help those with the greatest need and the fewest resources," Clinton said. Since then, the Democratic nominee has adopted a Methodist mantra as her unofficial campaign slogan: "Do all the good you can, for all the people you can, in all the ways you can, as long as you ever can." (The Clinton campaign did not respond to requests to interview the candidate.) Despite these public testimonies, less than 50% of Americans say Clinton is "very" or even "somewhat" religious, according to the Pew Research Center. A separate survey, by the Public Religion Research Institute, reveals stark religious and partisan divides in how Americans view the presidential nominees' faith. Nearly 80% of black Protestants, a traditional Democratic constituency, say Clinton has stronger religious beliefs than Trump; just 28% of white evangelicals, who lean heavily Republican, agree. Evangelicals' antipathy toward Clinton runs long and deep, said Ed Stetzer, executive director of the Billy Graham Center for Evangelism at Wheaton College in Illinois. Clinton's decades-long embrace of feminism and abortion rights clash with many conservative Christians' core beliefs. "Evangelicals see her as the personification of secular, progressive values, and that overshadows any of her self-identified religious practices."But many conservative Methodists, even those who disagree with Clinton politically, say her faith appears to be authentic. "Too often conservatives have been too dismissive of her religious beliefs, which are sincere," said Mark Tooley, a Methodist and president of the Institute on Religion and Democracy, a conservative think tank in Washington. "She was shaped by the church and is still committed to it, and you can't understand her political framework without understanding her Methodist background." The 'University of Life' Clinton's father, Hugh Rodham, wasn't a churchgoer, but he was a praying man. "I still remember my late father -- a gruff former Navy man -- on his knees praying by his bed every night," Clinton has said. "That made a big impression on me as a young girl, seeing him humble himself before God."If Clinton's father provided the model for private prayer, her mother demonstrated how to put that piety into public action. Dorothy Rodham was active at First United Methodist Church in Park Ridge, Illinois, a large congregation in a Chicago suburb. She taught Sunday school and regularly raised money for charity, inspiring her daughter's interest in social justice In 1961, when Clinton was a teenager, a youth pastor came blazing into Park Ridge behind the wheel of a red Chevy convertible. The Rev. Don Jones would inspire Clinton to see the world as her parish. Fresh from seminary after a stint in the Navy, Jones gathered the sheltered Methodist youth of Park Ridge and gave them crash courses in the "University of Life." He read them poems by e.e. cummings, introduced them to Christian intellectuals such as Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Paul Tillich, and asked them to interpret modernist paintings such as Picasso's "Guernica." "I think it's fair to say," Clinton said in 2009 while delivering a eulogy at Jones' funeral, "that next to my parents ... no adult had more influence on my life." His challenges were more than intellectual. Jones took his Christian charges into inner-city Chicago churches, where they mingled with black and Latino teens, creating connections with people they might not otherwise have met. Jones encouraged his youth group to babysit for the children of Latino migrant workers and to visit the elderly in nursing homes. Christians aren't supposed to sit quietly in church, hoping to get into heaven, Jones taught; they're supposed to build the kingdom of God on earth. That idea lies deep in the DNA of the Methodist movement, historians say. The early Methodists in 17th-century England earned their name because they were methodical and disciplined about their duties toward God and to their fellow man. John Wesley, founder of Methodism, preached that Christians should practice not only personal holiness but also a "social holiness." "Methodists have always had a strong sense of social purpose," said David Hempton, dean of Harvard Divinity School and an expert in early Methodist history. They advocated against slavery, corruption, public drinking, animal abuse, popular sports and ostentatious displays of wealth. They visited prisoners and the sick, educated children and gave their extra earnings to charity. Clinton has said that she spent a lot of time as a young person trying to "work out the balance between personal salvation and the social gospel."In 1962, Jones took Clinton and her youth group to hear the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. speak in Chicago, where the civil rights leader delivered his famous sermon "Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution." King's challenge struck Clinton like St. Paul on his horse. She left the room that night a changed person, she would later recall."His words, the power of his example, affected me deeply and added to the lessons of my minister to face the world as it is, not as we might want it to be," Clinton told a group of Baptists in September, "but to commit ourselves to turning it into what it should be."Bill Clinton credits King's speech with changing the trajectory of his wife's moral and political life. "It took my breath away when I realized 45 years ago that is really what motivates her," he said in Iowa this year. At the time, though, Clinton remained a "Goldwater girl," a rock-ribbed Republican like her father. At Wellesley College, she headed the college's Young Republicans Club. But a Methodist magazine, motive, flooded Clinton with progressive opinions -- rooted in liberal Christian theology -- on the Vietnam War and civil rights movement. "I wonder if it's possible to be a mental conservative and a heart liberal," she wrote in a letter to Jones, who'd become a lifelong mentor and confidant. By her senior year, Clinton appeared to have completed her political conversion to liberalism, writing her senior thesis on Saul Alinsky, the leftist community organizer. After college, Clinton says her Christian faith inspired her decision to do public service, rather than apply to white-shoe law firms. At the Children's Defense Fund, she says, she went undercover to expose systemic racism in the deep South and the plight of children with disabilities in New England. Around the same time, she met Bill Clinton at Yale Law School, and eventually followed him to Arkansas, where they married in 1975. Several years later, while raising their daughter, Chelsea, Hillary Clinton joined First United Methodist Church in Little Rock.While Bill attended a Baptist church down the road, Hillary became an active and "vital part" of the Methodist congregation, the local bishop later recalled. She volunteered to be the church's chancellor and taught adult Sunday school on the lawn of the Governor's Mansion. The Rev. Ed Matthews, former pastor of First United Methodist Church of Little Rock, recalls one of Clinton's lessons keenly. It was about forgiveness, and how it is not a human quality but rather a gift from God. When Clinton was first lady and facing her own crisis, Matthews said he went to the White House and reminded her of that lesson. The lion's den Soon after the Clintons arrived in Washington, they had dinner at the White House with a few pastors and their families, recalls the Rev. Tony Campolo. Hillary Clinton told the gathering that she reads Scripture daily, so the evangelical pastor asked what passages, in particular, interested her. "She said, the 'Book of Daniel,' which seemed strange to me," Campolo recalled recently. He asked her why. "She said because the Book of Daniel describes with care how political leaders handle situations under great pressure."In the Old Testament, the Book of Daniel is about a Jew exiled to Babylon, where he is tossed into the lion's den after his quick political ascent inspires jealousy. If the modern-day parallels aren't immediately obvious to others, they were evidently clear enough to the fresh-from-Arkansas Clintons. Clinton read more than Scripture while in the White House, according to friends and colleagues. She continued to subscribe to motive magazine, which is now out of print, as well as Christianity Today, the flagship magazine for evangelicals. She said she kept a copy of the Methodist "Book of Resolutions," the church's policy statements, in her private quarters of the White House, and regularly read books by Christian authors. She occasionally carried a small book filled with spiritual quotations and another of the Bible's Book of Psalms."She has always loved the Psalms," said Matthews, the Arkansas pastor. "I think she relates to their search for meaning, and how the psalmist can change moods, from lamenting how evil the world is, and how everyone is mistreating us, to showing gratitude to God for the beauty of the world." In Washington, the Clintons found a new church home on a snowy Sunday in January 1993. The family was feeling "stir crazy," Clinton recalls, so they trudged several blocks through the blizzard to Foundry United Methodist Church, where they surprised a pastor who had almost canceled services that morning. The Rev. J. Philip Wogaman, Foundry's former pastor, recalls the Clintons attending his church regularly for the next eight years, some 100 or so Sunday services in all. They sat three rows back on the right center aisle, he said, directly in his line of sight from the pulpit. Wogaman, a dignified man and Methodist scholar, said he tried not to preach politics overtly, though he thought carefully about the messages his sermons would send to the first family. He recalls only one overt political statement he made from the pulpit, asking Bill Clinton to carry the congregation's good wishes to the family of assassinated Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995. Chelsea became a part of Foundry's youth group, as her mother had in Park Ridge, and Wogaman recalls the Clintons attending parents' meetings and helping to plan for mission trips to Appalachia. When a member of the congregation fell ill, the Clintons would call the hospital to check up on them, the pastor recalled. The first family walks outside Foundry United Methodist Church in Washington.At a service marking Foundry's 200th anniversary last year, Hillary Clinton said the church was a place where "we were, not 'the First Family' -- we were just our family." "This community -- because indeed that's what it is -- was a place where we could worship, study, contemplate, be of service, get some good pastoral advice, and step outside all the commotion of life in the White House and Washington. That was very, very precious to us."But as the pressures -- and the scandals -- mounted, the first lady also looked elsewhere for spiritual sustenance. Close friends say she keeps her own counsel. She is far more comfortable assuaging a friend's grief or regret than she is asking others for help. But in 1994, after her high-profile health-care reforms foundered and scandal swirled around the White House, the first family decided they needed help from outside Washington. They invited a number of New Age gurus and motivational speakers to Camp David in Maryland. One woman, Jean Houston, particularly intrigued Clinton. Houston describes herself as a "scholar, philosopher and researcher in Human Capacities." One of those capacities, apparently, was the ability to converse with the spirit of Eleanor Roosevelt. In the Solarium of the White House, according to Washington journalist Bob Woodward, Houston encouraged Clinton to have brief "conversations" with Roosevelt and Gandhi, two revered figures for the first lady. Houston then asked Clinton to address Jesus, according to Woodward's account. That was too personal, Clinton said.Clinton was annoyed when the sessions -- media sensationalists called them "séances -- were revealed. Her friends and former colleagues say the incident was overblown; it was only an "imaginative exercise." "No doubt she admired Eleanor Roosevelt's courage and commitments, but to say that Hillary was having séances or communing with her is just crazy," said Melanne Verveer, Clinton's former chief of staff as first lady. The media reaction was reminiscent, Verveer said, of the brutal criticism of Clinton's "Politics of Meaning" speech in 1993. In the somewhat rambling address, Clinton did what she so rarely does in public: let her guard down and show her true feelings. Economic prosperity and political freedom aren't enough, Clinton said in the now-infamous speech. She encouraged Americans to dig deeper, to find the "core level meaning in our individual lives," to awaken from their "sleeping sickness of the soul." The press tore her apart. "Saint Hillary," The New York Times mocked. "Psychobabble," another newspaper said. Lissa Muscatine, Clinton's friend and former speechwriter, said the first lady felt blindsided and misunderstood. Her family had just taken Hugh Rodham, Clinton's father, off life support, a moment that stirred big questions in Clinton. "She was trying to be reflective and thoughtful in a personal way, and she got completely ridiculed. It was painful because she was really trying to say something. Her father was dying; if people are not allowed to be introspective in those moments, then we have no empathy whatsoever."Several months later, at a National Prayer Luncheon, Clinton said she was somewhat afraid to address religion again. "The last time I spoke in public about spirituality, around the time of my father's death, I was astonished to realize that there were many people for whom spirituality should be confined to events like this, and not brought out into the public arena." But whatever embarrassment Clinton felt, it would hardly compare with the public humiliation she would soon endure. Forgiveness At a White House prayer breakfast in 1998, President Bill Clinton apologized to the nation and to his family for conducting an affair with an intern, Monica Lewinsky. Couching his confession in Christian terms, the president said, "I don't think there's a fancy way to say that I have sinned."Hillary Clinton sat stoically through her husband's speech, recalled Matthews, the Arkansas pastor, who was sitting a few feet away. When the speech ended, he knelt beside her. "Are you all right, Hillary?" he asked. "I don't know what I'm going to do," Clinton whispered to him, Matthews said."Do you remember what you taught me about forgiveness and grace?" the pastor asked, reminding Clinton of her Sunday school lesson from years ago.Matthews says he doesn't even know if Clinton heard his question, she seemed so distraught and distracted. In her memoir "Living History," Clinton calls the Lewinsky scandal "the most devastating, shocking and hurtful experience of my life." "I would have to go deep inside myself and my faith to discover any remaining belief in our marriage," Clinton writes, "to find some path of understanding." During the scandal, three ministers, including Foundry's Wogaman and Campolo, the evangelical pastor, very publicly ministered to Bill Clinton. But Hillary took a more private tact."Where some people might go to a shrink, she goes to a minister," said a friend and former staffer of Clinton's. Clinton turned for counsel, as she often did, to her former youth pastor, Don Jones. Just as he had during the Park Ridge days, Jones pointed Clinton to classic liberal Christian theology, including a sermon by Paul Tillich that they had read together decades earlier. In "You Are Accepted," Clinton writes, Tillich teaches that "sin and grace exist in life in constant interplay; neither is possible without the other." The mystery -- and paradox -- of grace is that you cannot find it on your own; it finds you, often when you are most pained and restless. "Grace happens," Clinton wrote. Another spiritual classic offered lessons on forgiveness. Clinton says she first read "The Return of the Prodigal Son" by Henri Nouwen, a Dutch Catholic priest, in 1994. Separately, two friends gave it to her, she writes in "Living History." The book became a "lifeline," she would later say. Nouwen, a well-known spiritual writer, analyzes Jesus' story about the prodigal son from several perspectives: the father who forgives his wayward son, the son who returns home after squandering his family fortune, and the dutiful other son who had remained home. Clinton has said the book's emphasis on the "daily discipline of gratitude" struck her with the force of epiphany. Even amid Washington's craziness and pitched partisan battles, she had much to be grateful for, said the former first lady. Nouwen was also eloquent on the theme of forgiveness: "Do I want to be not just the one who is being forgiven, but also the one who forgives; not just the one who is being welcomed home, but also the one who welcomes home ...?"Clinton has said she might not have made it through the Lewinsky scandal without her faith; Matthews said that without her faith she likely would not have forgiven her husband. "People say that it was because of money or power or political prestige, and maybe that was a part of it," the pastor said. "But it's her faith that makes her tick." DevotionsClinton is still a member of First United Methodist Church in Little Rock, Matthews says, but hasn't been back in years. Though she sometimes attends services at a Methodist church near her home in Chappaqua, New York, her duties as secretary of state and now the Democratic presidential nomination have kept her on the road, and away from regular Sunday worship.But the Rev. Bill Shillady, a Methodist minister in New York, said he has found a way to pastor to the peripatetic Clinton. Shillady met Clinton at a memorial for 9/11 victims in New York in 2002, when she was a senator. He invited her to his former church in Manhattan, and over time the families became close, sharing Easter breakfasts and meals at Christmastime. Shillady conducted Chelsea's wedding and a memorial service for Dorothy Rodham, Clinton's mother.Around Easter in 2015, Shillady offered to send Clinton daily email devotions, which he wakes early each morning to compose. The devotions, which arrive in Clinton's inbox by 5 a.m., include a snippet of Scripture, a brief commentary on the passage and a prayer. In recent months, Shillady has enlisted a team, including a group of young women pastors, to help write the devotions. (Burns Strider, Clinton's friend and faith adviser to her 2008 presidential campaign, also emails spiritual thoughts to the candidate.) Clinton has said she appreciates the efforts, especially during the pressure cooker of a presidential campaign. "It just gets me grounded," she told a town hall in February.Occasionally, Shillady says, Clinton will respond to the devotions. She particularly liked the introduction to "Lady Wisdom," a figure from the poetry in the Old Testament. In the Book of Proverbs, Chapter 8, wisdom is personified as a woman who raises her voice at the crossroads and before the gates to the city. In Eugene Peterson's colloquial translation of the Bible, Lady Wisdom stands at the busiest intersections, the "corner of First and Main.""So, my sister, use your wisdom that God has given you, to help others to know of God's grace, truth and light," Shillady wrote, "For if anyone is at the corner of First and Main, it is you."Loving thy enemiesThroughout her time in Washington, Clinton has surprised conservatives and her liberal allies by crossing the political aisle to participate in bipartisan prayer groups. As first lady, Clinton says, she became close to several members of The Fellowship, a secretive Christian network of Washington power brokers. While in Congress, she shocked some Republicans by joining the Senate Prayer Breakfast. On matters of Christian doctrine, Clinton shares core beliefs with conservatives. She has said she believes in the Holy Trinity, that Jesus' death atoned for human sins and that Christ's resurrection was a historical event. She prays regularly and is well-versed in Scripture, citing biblical passages accurately and with ease. And yet, many conservative Christians refuse to recognize Clinton as a fellow believer. Ben Carson has connected Clinton to Lucifer, and a new documentary asks whether she is "an illuminati or the anti-Christ."Kristin Kobes Du Mez, a historian at Calvin College in Michigan, said she was drawn to study Clinton's faith in part to understand why conservative Christians so vehemently deny it. "Among conservative Christians -- those who most care about bringing their faith to bear on politics -- there's such a long history of if not demonizing Hillary Clinton, then at the very least setting her against everything they hold dear." From the moment Clinton stepped on the political stage, she seemed to represent a rejection of conservative Christian values. She dismissed women who "stay home and bake cookies," insulting Christians who hold to "biblical" views of submissive women. She was shaped by a church that sees government as a partner -- sometimes to be criticized, but rarely feared as a threat to religious freedom. She participated in the anti-war movement and has affirmed liberal orthodoxies on abortion and other social issues. Last year, she said that "deep-seated" religious beliefs on abortion "have to be changed," a pledge that angered Christians who consider abortion the killing of innocent lives. Meanwhile, many conservative Christians have created their own subculture, said Du Mez, publishing anti-Clinton books, hosting anti-Clinton radio shows, writing anti-Clinton articles and consuming anti-Clinton TV reports. "They aren't often confronted with different ways to be Christian in America today. Thus, they assume Clinton must be lying about her faith. Or pandering," the historian said. Of course, Clinton is no mere figurehead. She has been a protagonist in some of the most protracted political scandals in recent history, from her husband's sexual infidelities to her own dissembling about the use of a private email server while secretary of state. According to surveys, many Americans do not think Clinton is trustworthy.Still, as Clinton has acknowledged, politics is a "rough and tumble" business, and it's hard to imagine any politician who hasn't found foes along the way. But at a Baptist convention in Kansas City, Missouri, Clinton said that she has been trying to follow Christ's commandment to love her enemies. It's a lesson she remembers well from teaching Sunday school in Arkansas, she said, but some days it's "really hard" to put the lesson into practice. It is just as hard, it seems, for Clinton's enemies to love her.
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A few days before the servers of the largest provider of Ultra Anonymous hosting were found to be serving custom malware designed to identify visitors who were using the Tor service to hide their identity online. The javascript code exploited a security vulnerability in the open-source version of Firefox that the Tor network is based on.
In an Irish court, FBI agent admitted publicly that the agency had control of Freedom Hosting, a Tor hidden service operator company, in an effort to arrest a suspect behind the largest child porn facilitator on the planet.
Eric Eoin Marques, a 28-year-old Irishman, is now awaiting extradition to the US where he could face 100 years in prison on child pornography charges.
Marques is the owner and operator of Freedom Hosting, one of the largest web hosts for the Tor network., Hosting many of the darkest hidden services on the Darknet, including criminal hacking site HackBB, money laundering services, and responsible for hosting child porn on 550 servers throughout Europe.
The FBI agent alleged when officers examined the RAM from Marques's seized computer it revealed he had made inquiries about how to get a visa and entry into Russia, and residency and citizenship there. Online searches had also been made for a US passport template and US passport hologram star.
Eric Eoin Marques apparently already sent the earnings of his profitable Freedom Hosting business to his girlfriend over in Romania.
Just two weeks ago, we have learned that the National Security Agency may have developed either decryption capabilities or secret backdoor that enabled it to break most Internet encryption.
But Taking control over all Freedom Hosting servers by FBI agents and inserting some tracking code really seems like an incredibly questionable move by any Law Enforcement agency.
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Moscow (CNN)Russia has threatened "retaliatory measures" after the European Union slapped sanctions on senior members of its intelligence agency, the GRU. "We reserve the right to take retaliatory measures over this unfriendly step," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Monday, referring to the sanctions, which include a ban on travel and an asset freeze.Announced Monday, the sanctions target four people over last year's poisoning of ex-Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in the UK.Two of the men, GRU intelligence officers Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov, were accused by UK authorities of carrying out the attack using nerve agent Novichok, which they have denied. The EU also sanctioned GRU head Igor Olegovich Kostyukov and his deputy, Vladimir Stepanovich Alexseyev.Although the Skripals eventually recovered from the 2018 attack, the poison ended up in the hands of another British civilian couple, killing one woman.UK assesses Putin approved Skripal attack that endangered thousands - intel officialsRead More"Today's new sanctions deliver on our vow to take tough action against the reckless and irresponsible activities of the Russian military intelligence organisation, the GRU, which put innocent British citizens in serious danger in Salisbury last year," UK Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said in a statement.It is the first time the EU has used its new powers to impose sanctions on those connected with chemical weapons use and development, regardless of their nationality and location."This decision contributes to the EU's efforts to counter the proliferation and use of chemical weapons which poses a serious threat to international security," the EU's intergovernmental body, the European Council, said in a statement.Asked to comment on the sanctions on Petrov and Boshirov, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov rejected the decision. "They are suspects based on nothing, no evidence has yet been presented," he said on a conference call with reporters on Monday, Russia's state news agency TASS reported.Theresa May touts response to Russia's 'reckless' use of chemical weapons in Salisbury"We all know a set of already famous photos of these two citizens in the UK," Peskov added, referring to CCTV images of the two men released by British authorities last year. "You also know there are many photographs of Russians in Britain and they are not direct evidence."Skripal, 66, was found slumped on a bench on March 4, 2018, along with his daughter, Yulia, after being exposed to Novichok, a military-grade nerve agent.In an interview with the Kremlin-backed RT network last year, Petrov and Boshirov said that they were merely tourists during their trip to Salisbury, visiting its historic cathedral.CNN's Mary Ilyushina in Moscow, Erin McLaughlin in Brussels and Sam Quashie-Idun in London contributed to this report.
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Story highlightsIn all, 20 people jump into the water off the coast of SicilyThe boat was carrying people from areas of unrest in the Middle East Six migrants drowned Saturday in the Mediterranean Sea while trying to swim to shore in Italy, police said.In all, 20 people had jumped into the water off the coast of Sicily from a boat carrying 98 migrants, spokesman Giovanni Mazziano said. He believes that those who drowned did not know how to swim.The boat was carrying people from areas of unrest in the Middle East, among them Palestinians, Syrians and Egyptians.
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Story highlightsMothers with higher exposure to some particulates had newborns with significantly lower telomere lengthReduction of fine-particle air pollution levels may promote longevity, researchers sayBut other experts caution that more study is needed (CNN)Pollution affects us even in the womb: Women who are exposed to air pollution during pregnancy have babies with shorter telomeres (a genetic biomarker), a study published Monday in JAMA Pediatrics found.The length of telomeres -- caps at the end of chromosomes, similar to shoelace tips -- is considered a marker of biological aging.Based on their results, the researchers theorize that pre-birth exposure to air pollution may lead to negative health consequences later in life.Vulnerable period The researchers looked at 641 mother-newborn pairs, who were recruited between February 2010 and December 2014 to participate in the Belgium-based Environmental Influence on Ageing in Early Life study. This ongoing research project explores the interaction of human aging and environmental factors. Read MoreOnly women who had delivered a single child at full-term (at or after 37 weeks of gestation) were selected as participants. To measure exposure to air pollution, the research team relied on readings from monitoring devices calibrated to estimate particulate matter (PM2.5) at the mother's address. "Particulate matter" is the term used for a mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets found in the air, while 2.5 refers to those inhalable particles with diameters of 2.5 micrometers or smaller. (PM2.5 is about 30 times smaller than the average diameter of a human hair, which is about 70 micrometers.)Polluted environments kill 1.7 million children each year, WHO saysTo measure telomere length, the researchers extracted DNA from each baby's cord blood and placental tissue. The researchers found that mothers with higher residential exposure to PM2.5 had newborns with significantly lower telomere length -- and that this could not be explained by other factors including the mother's body mass index, ethnicity or smoking status. Each increase of 5 micrograms per cubic meter in exposure was associated with 9% shorter cord blood telomeres and 13% shorter placental telomeres, the researchers estimated. The second trimester was a particularly vulnerable period, the researchers found. The researchers theorize that exposure to particulate matter generates more reactive oxygen species in utero, which in turn increases the rate of shortening. Reactive oxygen species, or free radicals, are a type of unstable molecule that contains oxygen and easily reacts with other molecules. Within cells, a buildup of these free radicals may cause damage to DNA, RNA and proteins, which could eventually lead to cell death and so too cardiovascular disease.As a result of their work, the researchers suggest that a reduction of environmental fine-particle air pollution levels may promote longevity.However, we should be careful when interpreting these conclusions, some experts warn.'Exercise caution'Further studies are essential, according to an accompanying editorial by Pam Factor-Litvak of the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University, Dr. Ezra Susser of the New York Psychiatric Institute and Dr. Abraham Aviv of New Jersey Medical School at Rutgers. They note that the researchers have a "sound basis" for proposing that shorter relative telomere length in cord blood might have ramifications for adult cardiovascular disease risk and longevity. "One should exercise caution, however, about interpreting this finding in terms of a broader hypothesis about telomere length and the aging process," the editorial authors wrote. Telomere length is mostly inherited from our parents, they explain. Can meditation really slow aging?Still, this does not rule out that environmental exposures might impact telomere length in utero and ultimately at birth. It may be that the most intense phase of telomere length growth is during this period of development.Jan Karlseder, director of the Paul F. Glenn Center for Biology of Aging Research at the Salk Institute, said one strength of the new study is the wealth of data. Karlseder was not involved in the research.However, he said the study has some flaws, including the fact that no direct cause-and-effect relationship between pollution and telomere can be established."Telomere length can be influenced by many parameters, among them stress," Karlseder said. "Just to make up a possible scenario, it could be that mothers that live in more polluted areas are subjected to higher stress, which then leads to slightly shorter telomeres."Join the conversationSee the latest news and share your comments with CNN Health on Facebook and Twitter.Another issue is that the method the researchers used to measure the telomeres provides no information about their integrity. "Telomere length correlates with aging," Karlseder said, though "telomere integrity might be a more important characteristic."Professor Michael Davies, a reproductive epidemiologist at the Robinson Research Institute at the University of Adelaide, believes the study raises "important questions" for continued research. He added the new work also enlarges the range of known negative health outcomes "associated with exposure to very small sized particulate air pollution."
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London (CNN)More than 50,000 people in the UK have now died after contracting coronavirus, according to the respective national statistics offices of England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.At least 50,413 people had died, as of late May, with Covid-19 listed on their death certificate, according to England and Wales' Office for National Statistics (ONS), the National Records of Scotland, and the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency.The ONS said 45,748 had died with the virus in England and Wales as of May 29. A further 3,911 died in Scotland as of May 31, and 754 passed away with the virus in Northern Ireland as of May 29.Coronavirus pandemic: Updates from around the worldThe UK has the second highest number of coronavirus deaths globally. Its death toll is surpassed only by the US, which has recorded more than 111,000 fatalities. Read MoreThis latest data differs from the British government's official count. The UK's Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has reported only 40,680 coronavirus fatalities, which is the number included in the Johns Hopkins University Covid-19 Dashboard.The discrepancy between the two death tolls is caused by different counting methods. The DHSC only records deaths where the deceased was previously diagnosed with coronavirus, as opposed to the disease being detected post-mortem. The UK has officially recorded 288,834 cases of coronavirus, the highest case total in Europe.
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Story highlightsMcIlroy ends long wait for PGA Tour titleMoves up to No. 3 in world rankings (CNN)Rory McIlroy has set his sights on the $10 million prize -- and on this form you wouldn't bet against him.The former world No. 1 looked back to his best after storming to victory at the Deutsche Bank Championship Monday to claim his first PGA Tour title for 16 months.Follow @cnnsport
McIlroy started the final round at TPC Boston six shots adrift of overnight leader Paul Casey, but finished two clear of the Englishman at the top after holing seven birdies in a six-under-par 65 to reach 15-under 269.His resurgence was all the more impressive given the strong winds that had hit the $8.5 million tournament.Read: How Europe came back from the brink to rule the worldRead MoreAnd with the bumper multimillion-dollar prize on offer to the winner of the FedEx Cup, McIlroy is relishing the opportunity to make a late charge for top spot -- as well as leading Europe to glory in the upcoming Ryder Cup.JUST WATCHEDRyder Cup captain talks wild-card picks ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHRyder Cup captain talks wild-card picks 02:12"I still need to keep going with it, it's definitely not the finished article, but it's a big step in the right direction," he told reporters after claiming the $1.53 million first prize to take his PGA Tour season earnings to $4.2 million."I'm excited with how my game is and what I've found this week, and hopefully I can keep it going for the next couple of tournaments, but ultimately into the Ryder Cup and trying to get a fourth one of those."Ahead of the tournament, the Northern Irishman changed his putter and brought in a new putting coach after struggling on the greens this year."I knew my game was in good shape," the 27-year-old said. "I just needed to do something with the putting. I found something. I still need to keep going with it. It's definitely not the finished article, but it's a big step in the right direction."Who will win the Ryder Cup? Let us know on our Facebook pageTrophy on his right. Championship belt on his left.It was a good day for @McIlroyRory. pic.twitter.com/lNT1oTPsjr— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 6, 2016
This was McIlroy's first tournament triumph since winning the Irish Open in May and his first PGA title since May 2015, and lifted him to No. 3 in the world rankings.The four-time major winner will rise 34 places in the FedEx Cup standings after this latest victory and will join the leading 70 players in the race at the BMW Championship next week.Like this story? Get more at cnn.com/golfMeanwhile, world No. 1 Jason Day finished in a group of six players tied for 15th. The Australian was told after Friday's opening round that his wife and children had been involved in a car crash, but decided not to pull out after they were cleared of serious injury. The final event of the FedEx Cup takes place at the Tour Championship between September 22-25 -- just five days before the Ryder Cup between the US and Europe starts at Hazeltine.
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The biggest mistake companies make with data security is leaving all their secrets unprotected at one place, which if attacked, they are all gone in one shot.
An unnamed law enforcement agency has reportedly accessed billions of compromised usernames, email IDs, and their passwords, collected by LeakedSource, a popular breach notification service.
LeakedSource, launched in late 2015, that exposed some of the largest data breaches in 2016, including LinkedIn, DailyMotion, Rambler.ru, Last.fm, VK.com, Weebly, and Foursquare, might be facing a permanent shut down after law enforcement officers allegedly raided its operator.
The LeakedSource website that allowed visitors to look up for their account details that had been collected from multiple data breaches has suddenly disappeared, and its associated social media accounts have been suspended.
The data breach aggregation service had always been criticized for its unethical policy of allowing anyone to look up hacked account details, rather than discreetly notifying compromised account owners.
The service, which indexed more than 3.1 billion compromised accounts records last year, also sells access to the full archive for which it charges a membership fee.
Although there is no official announcement from the company or any law enforcement agency, an online OGFlip forum post made shortly after the site's takedown claims LeakedSource has been raided and the police have seized all the data hosted on it.
Here's the message from a person using the handle LTD wrote on OGF forum:
"Leakedsource is down forever and will not be coming back. Owner raided early this morning. Was not arrested, but all [solid state drives (SSD)] got taken, and LeakedSource servers got subpoenaed and placed under federal investigation. If somehow he recovers from this and launches LS again, then I'll be wrong. But I am not wrong."
LeakedSource made headlines last year for indexing the leaked data compromised during the high-profile data breach in LinkedIn, MySpace, Twitter, and Weebly.
While it is not clear whether LeakedSource hard drives and servers were located, or was actually raided, and if true, which law enforcement agency conducted the raid, the website is still unavailable.
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(CNN)He hasn't played a game for Brazil in almost a year, but Orlando City star Kaka has been handed an international lifeline after he was included in the five-time World Cup winner's squad for the upcoming friendlies against Costa Rica and the United States.Brazil's national team coach, Dunga called up the former Real Madrid and AC Milan player for the first time since October 2014, when he made two substitute appearances against Argentina and Japan.Follow @cnnsport
Kaka inclusion in the squad means that he set to miss Orlando City's MLS match against New England Revolution on September 5 -- Brazil's game against Costa Rica in New York takes place on the same day.Dunga's side will then take on the U.S. at Foxborough Stadium on September 8.It is a positive step for Kaka who has played 89 times for Brazil and appeared at three World Cup finals.Read MoreIn March, the midfielder told CNN that he still harbored hopes of making the Brazil squad for the 2018 World Cup in Russia."I have a three-year contract with Orlando, and at least these three. In four years, we have another World Cup," said Kaka, who will be 36 by the time 2018 comes around."If I feel good and Brazil needs me, (it) will be a good way to stop playing. So I hope I can play another World Cup."Liverpool's new $45 million signing Roberto Firmino has also been included, while there is an opportunity for Chelsea star Oscar to put the disappointment of missing out on the Copa America through injury behind him.Dunga has been experimenting with a mixture of youth and wise old heads in recent squads and Kaka's inclusion continues that trend."As for Kaka, we have brought him in for his experience," said the coach at his press conference. "Just as we have done with Robinho in the past."However, Philippe Coutinho, whose wonder goal gave Liverpool an opening-day Premier League win against Stoke, is one of the youngsters to surprisingly miss out."Coutinho had a chance at Copa America. We need experience, not just youngsters," said the 51-year-old. "We have to find a balance between youth and experience."In June, Brazil's hopes of restoring national pride after its disastrous 2014 World Cup exit were cruelly dashed after losing a penalty shootout to Paraguay at the Copa America quarterfinal stage.Read: Phillipe Coutinho -- the secret life of 'O Magico'Read: Kaka fears for Brazil's 'beautiful game'
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Story highlightsPoland's Radwanska is the defending championKuznetsova qualified by winning in Moscow title on SaturdayPliskova overcomes MuguruzaLondon (CNN)Desperate times call for desperate measures.Down a break against Agnieszka Radwanska in the final set as she battled exhaustion, tennis star Svetlana Kuznetsova sat down in her chair and took the extraordinary step of cutting off some of her hair.After chopping off a big chunk with a pair of scissors, it seemed as if a weight had been lifted.Follow @cnnsport
The Russian came back from a match point down to beat Radwanska 5-7 6-1 7-5 in a group match at the season-ending tournament for the eight best female tennis players in the world."At some point, I was ready to let it go and just lay on the court and let them take me out of here," Kuznetsova said in a court-side interview after the match in Singapore.Well, @SvetlanaK27 with something you don't see everyday. A self haircut while playing tennis ✂️ #WTAFinals pic.twitter.com/j9CwFn7MJ2— WTA (@WTA) October 24, 2016
Read More"But I was just trying to stay in there and hang in there," added the 31-year-old Russian, who had qualified for the WTA's showpiece event at the last minute by winning the title in Moscow Saturday. She promptly flew 5,000 miles to Radwanska.READ: No Serena, so who will win the WTA Finals?My hair or the match?"Just playing every point," Kuznetsova said, when asked how she managed to win the match just 48 hours after her victory on home soil.After the match, Kuznetsova told reporters she decided to go for the cut because her hair was in the way."I was trying to put it behind my headband, but my hair is very thick and heavy," she said. "In the end, when I was hitting the forehands, every time I would hit a good shot... it would hit my eye every time and I was struggling."I thought, 'okay, what's more important now - my hair which I can let grow or the match?'Radwanska had no idea Kuznetsova had given herself a trim, joking with reporters: "Good thing she didn't cut anything else.""Ninja"After trailing 4-1 in the opening set, Kuznetsova regained the initiative with aggressive play to get back to 5-5. Blasting a backhand down the line to set up a break point, she got the break with a forehand passing. Serving for the first set at 6-5, Kuznetsova missed two set points before taking the set with her third.Nicknamed "the ninja" for her trick shots from improbable angles, Radwanska has been voted a WTA Fan Favorite five times in a row.Against the powerful Kuznetsova, the 27-year-old Radwanska didn't disappoint her public in the second set as she used her strong defensive skills to unsettle her opponent's rhythm. READ: Angelique Kerber made to fight on day one of WTA FinalsTentative shotPinning an increasingly tired-looking Kuznetsova to the backhand corner, it looked like Radwanska was on the way to victory when she clinched an early break in the decider.It's been an odyssey for @SvetlanaK27, who was nearly outside the Top 100 three years ago, now back in Top 10 --> https://t.co/ZzBsnuvGXL pic.twitter.com/ZmfYiORP8d— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) October 24, 2016
Kuznetsova seemed so exhausted, she appeared to be on the verge of tears at the start of the third set. Trailing 2-0, the Russian cut off some of her hair and then promptly broke back to level the match at 2-2. Down 4-2, Kuznetsova fought back to 4-4, only for Radwanska to regain the lead and serve for the match at 5-4. But a tentative backhand on her first match point sealed her fate, as Kuznetsova went on to force the break and win the contest thanks to a forehand error.Agnieszka Radwanska has now lost 13 out of 17 meetings against Svetlana Kuznetsova.Pliskova prevailsThe second match of the day between French Open winner Garbine Muguruza of Spain and US Open finalist Karolina Pliskova pitted two of the most ferocious hitters of the women's tour against each other. It's a full comeback this third set for @KaPliskova. It is now 5-5 and the momentum on her side. #WTAFinals pic.twitter.com/ebXO8wwXte— WTA (@WTA) October 24, 2016
Muguruza, who has struggled with her form since her grand slam breakthrough on the clay of Roland Garros in June, looked like she was on the way to a fourth straight defeat to Pliskova as she trailed a set and a break.But an on-court chat with her coach, Sam Sumyk, temporarily worked wonders. The Frenchman told Muguruza to be more patient and "play the ball more" instead of going for one-shot winners. Down 3-2 in the second set, Muguruza managed to stop Pliskova's momentum as she cut down on her error count and took the set on a tie-break. But despite a 4-0 lead in the decider, Muguruza was unable to close it out. After the Spaniard squandered a match point at 5-2, Pliskova took the next five games and the match with attacking play."All the games were pretty close, I'm pretty happy that I made it," Pliskova said in a court-side interview after her 6-2 6-7 7-5 win.
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NetWeirdRC is a commercial backdoor tool targeting Mac OS X 10.6 and later, as well as Windows, Linux and Solaris, according to Intego. The product is sold for US$60 in the malware world, relatively cheap in comparison to the OSX/Crisis malware that was being sold for €200,000 ($240,000).
It's a commercial remote access tool, that after installation, calls home to the IP address 212.7.208.65 on port 4141 and awaits instructions. Then it carries out functions including installing files, gathering system information, stealing browser passwords and grabbing screen shots.
In addition, it said, the malware can "harvest stored and encrypted usernames and passwords from Opera, Firefox, SeaMonkey, and Thunderbird browsers and mail clients." It's able to infect Apple OS X (versions 10.6 and newer), Linux, Solaris, and Windows systems.
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Less than a month after Apple suffered one of its biggest malware attacks ever, security researchers have discovered another strain of malware that they claim targets both jailbroken as well as non-jailbroken iOS devices.
Last month, researchers identified more than 4,000 infected apps in Apple's official App Store, which was targeted by a malware attack in which some versions of software used by developers to build apps for iOS and OS X were infected with malware, named XcodeGhost.
And Now:
Researchers from a California-based network security firm Palo Alto Networks have discovered new malware that targets Apple's iOS users in China and Taiwan.
Capabilities of YiSpecter Malware
Dubbed YiSpecter, the malware infects iOS devices and once infected, YiSpecter can:
Install unwanted apps
Replace legitimate apps with ones it has downloaded
Force apps to display unwanted, full-screen ads
Change bookmarks as well as default search engines in Safari
Send user information back to its server
Automatically reappears even after a user manually deletes it from the iOS device
It is still unclear how many users have been or could be infected by YiSpecter, but according to the researchers, this first instance of iOS malware targeting and succeeding in infecting non-jailbroken iOS devices has been around since November 2014.
"Whether an iPhone is jailbroken or not, the malware can be successfully downloaded and installed," the researchers wrote in a blog post on Monday. "Even if you manually delete [YiSpecter], it will automatically re-appear."
YiSpecter targets jailbroken as well as non-jailbroken iOS devices by abusing private APIs to allow its four components that are signed with enterprise certificates to install from a centralized command and control server.
Three of the four malicious components can be used to hide their icons from iOS SpringBoard – the standard app that runs the home screen – and also disguise themselves with the same name and logos of system applications to escape detection from users.
Vectors of YiSpecter malware
According to researchers, YiSpecter malware has been targeting Apple's iOS devices for over 10 months, when it was first spread by disguising as an app that lets users watch free porn.
The app was advertised as a private version of a famous media player "QVOD" – a popular video streaming app developed by Kuaibo(快播) to share porn videos.
The malware then infected more devices through:
Hijacked Internet traffic from ISPs
A Windows worm that first attacked the Tencent's instant messaging service QQ
Online communities where people install third-party applications in exchange for promotion fees from app developers
Security researchers from Palo Alto Networks have already reported the latest YiSpecter malware to Apple, which says "they are investigating" the issue.
How to Remove YiSpecter from Your iOS Devices?
For iOS users who are potentially infected by YiSpecter should follow the below four-step process to remove the malware from your devices:
Head on to Settings –> General –> Profiles and remove all unknown or untrusted profiles.
Delete any installed apps with names 情涩播放器, 快播私密版 or 快播0.
You can use any third-party iOS management tool such as iFunBox on Windows or Mac OS X to connect with your iPhone or iPad
Then check for installed iOS apps like Phone, Weather, Game Center, Passbook, Notes, or Cydia and delete them. (Note: this will not affect original system apps but just delete the fake malware apps)
You can further visit Palo Alto Networks' blog post for more information on YiSpecter.
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Four years ago, NASDAQ servers were compromised by Russian hackers, who were somehow able to insert a "digital bomb" into the systems of NASDAQ stock exchange, which would have been able to cause several damage to the computer systems in the stock market and could bring down the entire structure of the financial system of the United States.
Till now, identities of the hackers have not been identified by the agencies who are investigating the whole incident from past four years. However, it has been identified that the intruder was not a student or a teen, but the intelligence agency of another country.
The Hackers successfully infiltrated the network of NASDAQ stock exchange with customized malware which had ability to extract data from the systems and carry out surveillance as well. However, a closer look at the malware indicated that it was designed to cause widespread disruption in the NASDAQ computer system.
MALWARE EXPLOITS TWO 0-DAY VULNERABILITIES
According to a magazine cover story, the malware that was actually used by the hackers to infect NASDAQ servers exploited two mystery zero-day vulnerabilities.
The attack on the NASDAQ stock exchange was reported by Bloomberg Businessweek in its investigative cover story, "The Nasdaq Hack", which detailed the incidents took place at the NASDAQ leading up to the discovery of the inserted digital time bomb.
According to the magazine, it all started in October 2010, when the FBI was monitoring the Internet traffic in the United States and noticed a signal coming from NASDAQ, which indicated a malware infection. The most troubling part was that the malware was actually an attack code, which was created to cause significant damage, from another country's foreign intelligence agency.
In February 2011, NASDAQ stock exchange confirmed the breach to its network and notified its customers.
The feds alerted and warned NASDAQ officials, who already knew about a compromise in their systems but had neglected to bother and inform anyone about it. The U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) was called in to help investigate the hack attacks against the company that runs the NASDAQ stock market.
After a five-month investigation by the FBI, NSA, CIA and US Treasury Department, it was uncovered that the malware used two unnamed Zero-day security flaws, for which there were no patches existed. Rather, it is unclear that the hackers targeted which software, and whether the hackers used these zero-day vulnerabilities to infect NASDAQ systems or to exfiltrate data.
In fact, one of the forensic investigators described the NASDAQ servers as "the dirty swamp," because very few records were available that would have revealed daily activities on the servers and helped retrace the steps of the intruders.
"The agents found little evidence of a broader attack. What they did find were systematic security failures riddling some of the most important U.S. financial institutions. It turned out that many on the list were vulnerable to the same attack that struck Nasdaq. They were spared only because the hackers hadn't bothered to try."
Further analysis of the attacking code indicated that the malware attacked the NASDAQ systems was similar in design to the malware written by the Russian Federal Security Service for the purpose of spying and, NSA agents says, had the ability to seriously disrupt the exchange's activities.
But it is also possible that the malware which had been used belongs to another country, Bloomberg notes. China was a primary suspect, for both its intrinsic features and its ability to confuse an investigation.
Nasdaq spokesperson says that the malware did not reach the stock exchange, as originally stated in the cover story headline. "The events of four years ago, while sensationalized by Businessweek, only confirmed what we have said historically: that none of Nasdaq's trading platforms or engines were ever compromised, and no evidence of exfiltration exists from directors' desks," said NASDAQ spokesman Ryan Wells.
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There's something "Human" to Social Engineering !
At the psychological skill of Social Engineering
Social engineering is the human side of breaking into corporate or personal pc's to gain information. Even companies that have an authentication process, firewalls, vpn's and network monitoring software are subject to the skill of a good social engineer.
In hacking we rely on our technical skill and in social engineering it is a game of getting your subject to tell you what you want to get into their system. Social engineering has been employed since the beginning of mankind, the art of trickery or deception for the purpose of information gathering, fraud, or in modern times, computer system access. In most cases today the social engineer never comes face to face with their target. In social engineering we exploit the attributes of the human decision making process known as "cognitive biases."
That was the question asked by the Team of Social-engineer.org Gurus.
Which tactic works best for a scamming social engineer? Acting like an authority figure and requiring a victim to answer questions and give up sensitive information? Or acting like a nice, trustworthy person who strikes up a friendly conversation and just needs the victim to tell them a few things to help them out?
They have just released results of a several-months long poll that laid out two different scenarios of how a Social engineer might try and elicit information from a victim.
The first showed how the principle of endearment and how it may be used by a malicious social engineer. The example given was a social engineer who attempts to get strangers to engage in very personal conversation with him with little effort. Dressed very casually he grabbed a prop that he felt would endear people to him, a small sign that had a funny slogan on it. As he walked around, looking like a tourist with his prop, he was able to engage people in conversation.
"The fact is we like to deal with people who are like us, but even more powerfully we like to deal with those who LIKE us," said Christopher Hadnagy, founder of social-engineer.org and author of Social engineering: The art of human hacking. "Endearment makes a person feel liked and, in turn, like you. Endearment is used by getting on the same plane as the target, or giving them reasons to like you."
The second story involved a social engineer employing the authority principle. The social engineer walks into the office with IT tools and a clip board he mumbles how busy he is today. Then looking at the secretary he barks an order, "I was sent to check your network connectivity and I have no time as I have to do this on 25 other nodes. I need you to log in to your network share with your password as I watch to confirm you can connect."
"This works because people fear losing their jobs and there are no methods in place for an employee to port or reject without fear," explained Hadnagy. "Other methods, like carrying a clipboard, looking busy or in control, all of these give off the air of authority and few people will question it."
Interview with David Kennedy (Member @ Social-engineer.org)
Mohit : First, tell us about yourself, your experience and what you have produced in the social engineering field?
David : I'm a director of information security for a fortune 1000 company. Don't let the title fool you, being a director just means i can focus on the stuff i love which is breaking things. I have a heavy penetration testing and exploitation background dating back to the military intelligence days as well as a security consultant working with a number of fortune 500 and 1000 companies. As a penetration tester a few years back, social-engineering was a major portion of what i needed to do in order to gain access either physically or through social-engineering attacks against organizations. It's been a blast working in the security community and contributing as much as i can to open source. My philosophy in life is i love what i do and where i work and my goal is to give as much back to the security community and make them successful and help if i can. I'm one of the founders of derbycon, a security conference in louisville kentucky, creator of the social-engineer toolkit, fast-track, member of the social-engineer crew/podcast, and main blog post at https://www.secmaniac.com.
Mohit : Please explain what social engineering is and how we use social engineering?
David : Social-engineering simply put is the manipulation of human behavior to achieve some task. For us as penetration testers, social-engineering can be leveraged in multiple capacities to compromise an organization and gain access which typically circumvents the majority of security controls in place in an organization. For me, i leverage social-engineering on a regular basis to identify weaknesses within my security program and user awareness. Most organizations are spending a ton of money on the latest shiny technology that promises to fix their security problems while our humans are finding the easiest way to get in.
Mohit : What are the best ways to perform social engineering?
David : Social-engineering takes some time to learn and something that requires practice. There's no easy answer on what the best way to social-engineer a victim. When i'm going after an organization i look at what they have on the internet, who the personnel is, their language, what companies they own, and as much information i can possibly learn from open source intelligence (osint). I'll develop a pretext (my attack) based on what i learn and practice it before hand to make sure it's perfect and flawless. A lot of times leveraging social networking sites in order to learn a lot of information about my targets is beneficial and leveraging trust with people they trust can always make that little bit of a difference.
Mohit : What are the recent usages of social engineering, such as the, hbgary hack by anonymous or rsa hack ?
David : I think the most recent one would be the rsa hack where the details are still a bit vague but leveraged spear-phishing in order to target a select amount of people with a flash zero day. We've seen these attacks become more and more prevalent and something we have been preaching on the social-engineer.org podcast for a large time that these types of attacks are coming and it's going to be something really difficult to protect against.
Mohit : How did "SET (Social engineering toolkit)" come about and why did you develop it?
David : when set was first conceived chris hadnagy and i were sitting in a chat room on irc talking together and he mentioned he was starting social-engineer.org to try to bring more awareness and education to the community about social-engineering and how it relates directly to security. We started chatting and found that there really was no tool out there for social-engineering and something that was a huge gap for us as penetration testers. Out of that talk, a raw version of set was created which was really basic in nature, it had a mass mailer, some pdf exploits and that was really it. Even with its early, early release it got a ton of positive feedback and it has just grown from there. I never thought for one minute that set would become the lead open source tool in social-engineering and something that penetration testers leverage on a regular basis, it's quite impressive and i'm humbled by it.
Mohit : Is social engineering dangerous ?
David : social-engineering is extremely dangerous and the largest threat that i see in information security to date. As mentioned before, we have a ton of technology in place that is specifically designed to stop buffer overflows (or detect them), catch malware (kind of a joke at this point), and protect our web applications. Yet our user population is still completely vulnerable and clueless on the signs of a breach. A fine balance between technology and user awareness needs to be accomplished and it'll never be 100 percent but it'll be a lot better than an uneducated user population.
Mohit : how does someone master social engineering ?
David : Social-engineering requires you to change your behavior, remove your barriers, and start to manipulate humans to do your bidding. I know that sounds awful, but use social-engineering in a positive way at your organization to see if you can affect a decision in your manner. Read and learn from studies on behavioral analysis and how humans interact with one another. Use the social-engineer.org framework to help you get the knowledge to expand on. Ultimately it's going to be yourself learning the techniques and applying them on a regular basis and be able to manipulate your own behavior to get a desired outcome from someone else.
Mohit : Give us an overview of the social engineering tools and what it offers.
David : The social-engineer toolkit (set) is an open-source python driven arsenal for penetration testers aimed at testing how well an organization can withstand a social-engineer attack. Set has a number of attack vectors specifically aimed at targeting the user population. Set aids a penetration tester in social-engineer attacks however doesn't perform it for them. It's up to the penetration tester to perform intelligence gathering and form their pretext in order to have a successful attack. Set has a number of tools and attacks including the spear phishing module, web attack vectors, teensy usb hid, wireless attack vectors, and a number of additional capabilities and features that make set a unique when it comes to social-engineering and penetration testing. Set is being used internationally by penetration testers and a critical tool to them in every capacity as social-engineering is a highly important attack vector to leverage during normal testing
After that great interview with the creator of the Social Engineering Toolkit, David Kennedy, I wondered how many readers really understand the difference in social engineering as opposed to hacking. The truth is social engineering is rarely discussed. People mostly like to talk about cracking and phreaking.
Let's bring social engineering out of the closet and onto discussion blogs. Sharing information, learning the techniques and knowing how to protect yourself from social engineering is the best way to be skilled in this method of hacking.
Hadnagy says the poll results further enforce that humans are naturally trusting creatures. But it is that trusting attitude that has led many to being hacked.
[Interview Source : 'The Hacker News' Magazine - Social Engineering Edition - Issue 02 - May,2011]
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Story highlightsPacquiao wants Mayweather rematchAmerican retired unbeaten in SeptemberHe beat Pacquiao on points in MayFilipino says he will quit after one more fightAbu Dhabi (CNN)In the latest twist of one of boxing's longest-running sagas, Manny Pacquiao says he wants another crack at Floyd Mayweather before he quits the ring.Follow @cnnsport
Although Mayweather has already hung up his gloves, with a 49-0 unbeaten record, this hasn't stopped his Filipino rival of dreaming of a rematch of the most lucrative bout in boxing history.The 36-year-old is hoping for one more fight before he ends his distinguished career, having been a champion in eight weight divisions, and he insisted that Mayweather could be his opponent. Photos: The main event Photos: The main eventFloyd Mayweather reportedly made over $300 million from beating Manny Pacquiao in the richest fight in boxing history in May -- and he's already splashed out $4.8 million of that on a new car.Hide Caption 1 of 26 Photos: The main eventFloyd Mayweather Jr. looks at the crowd as he celebrates his unanimous decision victory against Manny Pacquiao in Las Vegas on Saturday, May 2.Hide Caption 2 of 26 Photos: The main eventMayweather left, hugs Pacquiao after defeating him in their welterweight unification bout.Hide Caption 3 of 26 Photos: The main eventMayweather celebrates his victory over Pacquiao. The bout went the full 12 rounds.Hide Caption 4 of 26 Photos: The main eventManny Pacquiao reacts after his fight against Floyd Mayweather.Hide Caption 5 of 26 Photos: The main eventFloyd Mayweather won the World Boxing Organization's title and retained the World Boxing Association and World Boxing Council belts. Hide Caption 6 of 26 Photos: The main eventTrainer Freddie Roach adjusts Manny Pacquiao's mouth guard at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. .Hide Caption 7 of 26 Photos: The main eventFloyd Mayweather was the victor in the welterweight world championship unification bout.Hide Caption 8 of 26 Photos: The main eventFloyd Mayweather is now 48-0 with 26 knockouts. Pacquiao is 57-6-2 with 38 knockouts. Hide Caption 9 of 26 Photos: The main eventBeyonce Knowles and Jay Z attend the welterweight unification championship bout.Hide Caption 10 of 26 Photos: The main event Model Cassie Ventura, left, and Sean "Diddy" Combs pose ringside.Hide Caption 11 of 26 Photos: The main eventFloyd Mayweather throws a nasty left at Manny Pacquiao. Hide Caption 12 of 26 Photos: The main eventFloyd Mayweather, who looked strong late, connects during the 12-round fight.Hide Caption 13 of 26 Photos: The main eventFloyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao exchange punches on Saturday, May 2, at their championship fight in Las Vegas.Hide Caption 14 of 26 Photos: The main eventFloyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao go toe to toe. Hide Caption 15 of 26 Photos: The main eventFloyd Mayweather connects with a strong left on Manny Pacquiao at the welterweight world championship unification fight.Hide Caption 16 of 26 Photos: The main eventManny Pacquiao throws a right at Floyd Mayweather on Saturday, May 2.Hide Caption 17 of 26 Photos: The main eventFloyd Mayweather has a right of his own at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.Hide Caption 18 of 26 Photos: The main event Mike Tyson at ringside during the Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao bout.Hide Caption 19 of 26 Photos: The main eventManny Pacquiao acknowledges the crowd before the start of his welterweight world championship unification bout against Floyd Mayweather.Hide Caption 20 of 26 Photos: The main eventFloyd Mayweather enters the ring before taking on the Philippines-born Manny Pacquiao on Saturday, May 2.Hide Caption 21 of 26 Photos: The main eventParis Hilton enters the arena before the start of the bout between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao on May 2, 2015, in Las Vegas. Hide Caption 22 of 26 Photos: The main eventActor and director Ben Affleck poses ringside before the big fight in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.Hide Caption 23 of 26 Photos: The main eventSinger Mary J. Blige attends the bout.Hide Caption 24 of 26 Photos: The main eventActor Michael Keaton is ringside for the long-anticipated bout.Hide Caption 25 of 26 Photos: The main eventDonald Trump and model Melania Trump at ringside.Hide Caption 26 of 26"It's possible -- very much," he told CNN World Sport at a charity event in Abu Dhabi on Saturday. "I would love to have a rematch if he wants it."Pacquiao's trainer Freddie Roach suggested this week there may be a repeat of May's long-awaited mega-millions encounter, but Mayweather has made it clear on several occasions that he has finished with boxing, and has no intention of beating Rocky Marciano's record.Read More"Of course we hear from him many times that he has retired. It's not new for him," Pacquiao said of the American.He was dogged by a shoulder problem when he took on Mayweather in Las Vegas, where he lost unanimously on points to give him a career record of 57 wins, six defeats and two draws.Pacquiao said he hoped to announce his next opponent "late next month." Should 'Pacman' fight 'Money' again? Tell us on CNN Sport's Facebook page
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Centennial, Colorado (CNN)It's déjà vu all over again. One by one, neighbors, teachers, coaches, classmates and teammates are stepping up to a witness stand to share their memories of a "perfect kid." They describe a quiet, sweet-natured, respectful boy who did well in school, got along with others and was kind to those less fortunate. A few months ago, the good boy's name was Jahar. This one is being called Jimmy. The 13th JurorWith the experienced eye of a trained observer and an avid trial-watcher's curious mind, Ann O'Neill is "The 13th Juror" for CNN's audience. Follow @AnnoCNN on Twitter daily.These boys, Dzhokhar "Jahar" Tsarnaev and James "Jimmy" Holmes, grew up to do horrible, unspeakable things. They killed strangers in places where people seek enjoyment, leaving others bloodied, broken and maimed. They made simple pleasures frightening, scarring communities once secure in the belief that "bad things don't happen here." Read MoreBoth boys had parents who wanted nothing more than for them to succeed and live out the American dream. But the boys felt out of place as they entered their teens, and eventually lashed out with unspeakable violence. For Jimmy and Jahar, the dream died before they reached 25.They now stand convicted of committing multiple murders deemed especially cruel, heinous and depraved. And they are becoming poster boys for the death penalty at a time when some states are declaring moratoriums and the method of execution is being challenged in the courts. For all their similarities, there is one glaring difference between these two capital cases. While Tsaraev's crime was cloaked in terrorism and what a judge called "the siren song" of martyrdom in the name of radical Islam, Holmes' story will focus on mental illness. It is the terror from within.We know what happened to Jahar Tsarnaev. His jury was unmoved by the photos of the cute little boy with the big brown eyes, or the fact he was helpful at school, attended a prom for the special ed kids and was nicer to girls than some of his friends.JUST WATCHEDVoices of Aurora: Coping with grief, conquering lifeReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHVoices of Aurora: Coping with grief, conquering life 04:13He awaits his death sentence, locked away in isolation at the federal Supermax prison, a 90-minute drive south of the courtroom where Holmes and his lawyers are appealing to jurors' mercy. Tsarnaev was tried, convicted and condemned in a federal court in Massachusetts, where there is no state death penalty. Holmes' case is unfolding in a state court in Colorado, which has the death penalty on the books, but seldom uses it.Neither state has held an execution in a generation. Holmes has been convicted of 24 counts of first-degree murder. No one questions that he suffers from schizophrenia. No one questions that his illness is severe. It wasn't enough for a successful insanity defense, perhaps, but his lawyers are far from finished. At this stage of the trial, when punishment is determined and mercy is granted or denied, the focus shifts from the crime to the man who committed it. The seats reserved for the families of the dead and wounded were empty as the defense took control of the courtroom narrative. "This phase will be, in its entirety, all about the person who committed these horrors, these aggravated murders," prosecutor George Brauchler said. "When he was a child, he had an uneventful life," he added, ticking off the things that later went wrong for Holmes: "One love lost, one school lost, one career lost.""When things didn't work, the crime took place," the prosecutor said. The jury already has found that Holmes deliberately opened fire during the first moments of July 20, 2012, at a crowded movie theater in suburban Aurora. He intended to kill, and he acted with extreme indifference for the value of human life. He wasn't out of his mind, jurors determined; he knew what he was doing was wrong."We accept your verdicts," defense attorney Rebekka Higgs told jurors on Thursday, after they found that the cruelty of the murders qualified for the ultimate punishment. It is possible to be legally sane but seriously mentally ill, Higgs said. "But for his mental illness, this crime never would have occurred. It's not a justification or an excuse, but a reason to choose life." And so, the defense is pulling out all the stops to humanize Holmes. It brought 18 witnesses from California to Colorado to talk about his wonder years. "You're going to hear about Mr. Holmes' life from the beginning because you are now responsible for that life," Higgs told the jury. "And you need to know everything about that life." Ten of the witnesses took their turns before the jury, until a juror fell ill. The jury was sent home Friday, but the testimony continued, captured on video to be shown later.The witnesses described a polite, mellow kid who seemed to enjoy an idyllic childhood with parents who were loving, supportive and engaged. There were piano lessons and soccer and basketball practices. The haunted house the Holmes family created in their garage each Halloween was a hit in the Oak Hills neighborhood near Castroville, California. The small agricultural community is known as "The Artichoke Capital of the World." Photos: Colorado shooting victims Photos: Colorado shooting victimsJonathan T. Blunk, 26, served for five years in the U.S. Navy. He died shielding a friend from the gunfire inside the theater.Hide Caption 1 of 12 Photos: Colorado shooting victimsAlexander J. Boik, 18, was remembered by friends and loved ones as a "great person" whose "craziness touched hundreds," according to a Facebook page created in his memory.Hide Caption 2 of 12 Photos: Colorado shooting victimsAir Force Staff Sgt. Jesse E. Childress, an Air Force reservist, was a cybersystems operator on active duty. He was 29.Hide Caption 3 of 12 Photos: Colorado shooting victimsGordon W. Cowden, 51, took his two teenage children to the theater. His children escaped unharmed.Hide Caption 4 of 12 Photos: Colorado shooting victimsJessica Ghawi, 24, was an aspiring sports reporter. She grew up in Texas before moving to Denver to try break into the television market there. Hide Caption 5 of 12 Photos: Colorado shooting victimsPetty Officer 3rd Class John Thomas Larimer, 27, served in the Navy like his father and grandfather. He had been in the service for about a year. Hide Caption 6 of 12 Photos: Colorado shooting victimsMatthew R. McQuinn, 27, died trying to provide cover for his girlfriend, Samantha Yowler, during the shooting, according to a family attorney. Yowler survived. Hide Caption 7 of 12 Photos: Colorado shooting victimsMicayla C. Medek, 23, known to her friends as Cayla, was "very spiritual and close to God," cousin Anita Busch told CNN. Hide Caption 8 of 12 Photos: Colorado shooting victimsVeronica Moser Sullivan, 6, was the youngest victim of the Aurora theater shooting. She had just learned how to swim. Hide Caption 9 of 12 Photos: Colorado shooting victimsAlex M. Sullivan, 27, went to the movie to celebrate his birthday with his wife, two days before their first wedding anniversary.Hide Caption 10 of 12 Photos: Colorado shooting victimsAlexander C. Teves, 24, recently graduated from the University of Denver with a master's degree in counseling psychology. He died protecting his girlfriend.Hide Caption 11 of 12 Photos: Colorado shooting victimsRebecca Ann Wingo, 32, joined the Air Force after high school, became fluent in Mandarin and served as a translator, according to CNN affiliate WFAA.Hide Caption 12 of 12There were big neighborhood parties on Christmas and July 4, and kids roamed freely across unfenced back yards. Holmes was one of a group of boys who had the run of the place. In the photographs, he is smiling. He seems happy. Listen to what people who once knew Holmes and his family had to say:"He was a normal kid. He was very popular, a very bright student. The other kids liked to play with him. He was good in sports," said Suzanne Jimenez Diaz, a secretary at Castroville Elementary School."He was a gentleman. He was sweet. He just had a nice, mellow mannerism to him," said Martin Thomas Barrett, a neighbor from Oak Hills. He said Holmes was one of a pack of about 15 neighborhood boys, including his sons, who played together. "It seemed like all those boys were having a great childhood," he added, saying Holmes seemed "extremely happy" as a boy of 9 or 10. He described Holmes' parents, Robert and Arlene, as "superparents.""He was a very nice kid, very fun to be around. He was just there having fun with everyone else," said Barrett's son, Joseph, who went by the childhood nickname of "Jo-Jo." Joseph Barrett is now an attorney in Las Vegas."He was a good student and I thought he had potential," said his former piano teacher, Claire Ann Vincent. She said she was sorry to lose him when the Holmes family moved to San Diego as he reached the age for middle school. "He was a good boy," said middle school band teacher James Gerald Posteraro. Holmes traded the piano for a trumpet. He didn't seem to have trouble fitting in, and he received straight As and high marks for effort and citizenship. "I remember a very funny, very sweet, quiet kid who kind of flew under the radar," said Patrick Silva, who played soccer with Holmes during middle school and high school. "I didn't have anything bad to say about him on the field, and I don't give my respect willy-nilly.""He was pretty much a model child," said Barbara Stop Martin, a neighbor in San Diego who hired Holmes for yard work when he was 17. She said he worked hard and did everything he was asked to do. Photos: Mass shooters in U.S. history Photos: Mass shooters in U.S. historyDylann Storm Roof is accused of opening fire at a church in Charleston, South Carolina, killing nine.Hide Caption 1 of 7 Photos: Mass shooters in U.S. historyAdam Lanza killed 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, in 2012. He also killed his mother.Hide Caption 2 of 7 Photos: Mass shooters in U.S. historyJames Holmes opened fire inside a packed movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, also in 2012. He killed 12 people and injured 70.Hide Caption 3 of 7 Photos: Mass shooters in U.S. historyJared Loughner killed six people and wounded former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in Arizona.Hide Caption 4 of 7 Photos: Mass shooters in U.S. historySeung-Hui Cho was responsible for the 2007 massacre at Virginia Tech, which left 32 people dead.Hide Caption 5 of 7 Photos: Mass shooters in U.S. historyAaron Alexis killed 12 people inside the Navy Yard in Washington in 2013.Hide Caption 6 of 7 Photos: Mass shooters in U.S. historyEric Harris and Dylan Klebold were responsible for killing 13 people at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, in 1999.Hide Caption 7 of 7But, Holmes wasn't as social in San Diego as he had been in Castroville. By the end of middle school, he began to withdraw. Classmate William Tyler Reese recalled him as a group of five "quiet guys" who ate lunch together in the cafeteria, went to movies and played paintball. "I would say he was a 'by himself' kind of guy," said Thomas James Oliver, who taught Holmes in advanced history and English classes in high school. "Jimmy was really tough to get to know." He doesn't remember him having friends. He had won medals in cross-country as a child, but by the time he got to high school, Holmes didn't have the stamina or form to succeed, said his coach, Lori Villareal Godwin. He usually came in last, but he kept coming to practice. She described Holmes as "a shadow figure." She never saw him smile and found his social awkwardness "painful." He kept his head and eyes down and gave off a vibe: "I can see you but please don't talk to me." He seemed to be "in his own little world." "He was part of us, but not part of us," Godwin said. "If I didn't take roll, I probably wouldn't even know he was there." He was so shy that she wondered if he had a learning disability. But, she added, other students told her Holmes was "crazy smart."Crazy smart. Is that what happened to the model child, the happy boy?By high school, Holmes was struggling with his "broken brain" and having thoughts about killing people, he revealed in a notebook he mailed to a psychiatrist hours before going on his killing rampage. Photos: Colorado movie theater massacre Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreThe public gets its first glimpse of James Holmes, then 24, the suspect in the Colorado theater shooting during his initial court appearance July 23, 2012. With his hair dyed reddish-orange, Holmes, here with public defender Tamara Brady, showed little emotion. He is accused of opening fire in a movie theater July 20, 2012, in Aurora, Colorado, killing 12 people and wounding 70. Holmes faces 166 counts, almost all alleging murder or attempted murder. He has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. More photos: Mourning the victims of the Colorado theater massacreHide Caption 1 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacrePolice release the official photo from Holmes' booking after the shooting.Hide Caption 2 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreHolmes often had a blank stare during his July 23, 2012, court appearance, seeming to be in a daze. Hide Caption 3 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreVictims and their relatives and journalists watch the proceedings in 2012.Hide Caption 4 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreFlags fly at half-staff on July 23, 2012, at the Arapahoe County Courthouse in Centennial, Colorado, where the movie theater shooting suspect had his first court appearance. The murder counts against Holmes carry a possible death penalty.Hide Caption 5 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreArapahoe County District Attorney Carol Chambers talks to reporters July 23, 2012, before heading into the courthouse. The murder counts against Holmes carry a possible death penalty. Hide Caption 6 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreFamily members of the victims arrive at the courthouse July 23, 2012, for the suspect's first court appearance.Hide Caption 7 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreThe Century Aurora 16 multiplex in Aurora becomes a place of horror after a gunman opened fire July 20, 2012, in a crowded theater. Hide Caption 8 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreHolmes is accused of opening fire during a midnight screening of the Batman movie "The Dark Knight Rises." Holmes purchased four weapons and more than 6,000 rounds of ammunition, police say.Hide Caption 9 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacrePolice investigate outside the Century 16 multiplex July 21, 2012, a day after the mass shooting. Hide Caption 10 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreAgents search the suspect's car outside the theater.Hide Caption 11 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreAurora police escort a sand-filled dump truck containing improvised explosive devices removed from Holmes' booby-trapped apartment on July 21, 2012. Authorities have said they believe the suspect rigged his place before leaving for the movie theater. Hide Caption 12 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacrePolice break a window at the suspect's apartment July 20, 2012, in Aurora.Hide Caption 13 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreLaw enforcement officers speak with Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, center, outside the suspect's apartment July 21, 2012.Hide Caption 14 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreLaw enforcement officers prepare to disarm the booby-trapped apartment July 21, 2012.Hide Caption 15 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreOfficials tow cars outside Holmes' apartment July 21, 2012. Police disassembled devices and trip wires set up in the apartment.Hide Caption 16 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreOfficers prepare to place an explosive device inside the apartment.Hide Caption 17 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreDebris flies out a window, right, after law enforcement officers detonate an explosive device inside the apartment July 21, 2012.Hide Caption 18 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacrePeople mourn the victims during a vigil behind the theater where a gunman opened fire on moviegoers in Aurora.Hide Caption 19 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreA woman grieves during a vigil for victims behind the theater.Hide Caption 20 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreA distraught woman receives counseling from the Rev. Quincy Shannon, left, in front of Gateway High School in Aurora, where the families of the missing met after the shooting.Hide Caption 21 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreLin Gan of Aurora holds back tears as she speaks to reporters about her experience in the Century 16 theater.Hide Caption 22 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacrePeople embrace before a vigil for victims behind the theater where a gunman opened fire on moviegoers.Hide Caption 23 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreInvestigators work on evidence near the apartment of James Holmes on July 20, 2012.Hide Caption 24 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreMembers of the Aurora Police Department SWAT unit walk near the Holmes' apartment. Hide Caption 25 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreTelevision news crews gather in front of the home of Robert and Arlene Holmes, parents of suspect James Holmes, in San Diego on July 21, 2012.Hide Caption 26 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreA popcorn box lies on the ground outside the Century 16 movie theater.Hide Caption 27 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreAdariah Legarreta, 4, is comforted by her grandmother Rita Abeyta near the Century 16 Theater in Aurora.Hide Caption 28 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreJessica Ghawi, an aspiring sportscaster, was one of the victims.Hide Caption 29 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreA woman waits for news outside Gateway High School, a few blocks from the scene of the shooting at the Century Aurora 16.Hide Caption 30 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreAurora police chief Daniel J. Oates speaks at a press conference near the Century 16 Theater on July 20, 2012.Hide Caption 31 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreAgents search the trash container outside the suspect's apartment in Aurora.Hide Caption 32 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreA Federal ATF officer carries protective gear onsite at the home of the shooting suspect.Hide Caption 33 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacrePresident Obama speaks on the shootings at a July 20, 2012, event in Fort Myers, Florida. Hide Caption 34 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreMoviegoers are interviewed at the Century Aurora 16.Hide Caption 35 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreOfficers gather at the theater July 20, 2012.Hide Caption 36 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreInvestigators were a common sight at the theater on July 20, 2012.Hide Caption 37 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreAuthorities gather at the shooting suspect's apartment building in Aurora. Police broke a second-floor window to look for explosives the suspect claimed were in the apartment. Hide Caption 38 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreScreaming, panicked moviegoers scrambled to escape from the black-clad gunman, who wore a gas mask and randomly shot as he walked up the theater's steps, witnesses said.Hide Caption 39 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreOnlookers gather outside the Century Aurora 16 theater.Hide Caption 40 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreA woman sits on top of her car near the crime scene. Hide Caption 41 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacrePolice block access to the Town Center mall after the shooting. Hide Caption 42 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreCell phone video taken by someone at the theater showed scores of people screaming and fleeing the building. Some, like this man, had blood on their clothes.Hide Caption 43 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreWitnesses told KUSA the gunman kicked in an emergency exit door and threw a smoke bomb into the darkened theater before opening fire.Hide Caption 44 of 45 Photos: Colorado movie theater massacreWhat is believed to be the suspect's car is examined after the shooting. Hide Caption 45 of 45None of the people who has testified so far mentioned seeing signs of serious mental illness. That evidence is yet to come, and according to the defense, it is the key to the argument for mitigation. "The only reasonable explanation here is a psychotic break, a broken mind," said defense attorney Higgs. All the elements that made his crime especially heinous "were born of disease," she told jurors, saving her most dramatic argument for last: "We don't kill people for being sick."
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(CNN)Scientists studying the remarkably well-preserved remains of an Ice Age bird have identified the specimen as a horned lark.Buried and frozen in permafrost near the village of Belaya Gora in north-eastern Siberia, the bird was discovered by local fossil ivory hunters, who passed it on to a team of experts, including Nicolas Dussex and Love Dalén from the Swedish Museum of Natural History, for testing.Radiocarbon dating revealed the bird lived around 46,000 years ago, and genetic analysis identified it as a horned lark (Eremophila alpestris), according to a paper published Friday in the journal Communications Biology.Dalén told CNN that research showed the bird may be an ancestor to two subspecies of lark alive today, one in northern Russia and the other on the Mongolian steppe."This finding implies that the climatic changes that took place at the end of the last Ice Age led to formation of new subspecies," he said.The bird was found in north-eastern Siberia at a site which also contained other frozen specimens.Read MoreThe preservation of the bird is explained in large part by the cold of the permafrost, explained Dussex, but this specimen is in extraordinarily good condition."The fact that such a small and fragile specimen was near intact also suggests that dirt/mud must have been deposited gradually, or at least that the ground was relatively stable so that the bird's carcass was preserved in a state very close to its time of death," said Dussex.The next stage of research involves sequencing the bird's entire genome, said Dalén, which will reveal more about its relationship to present day subspecies and estimate the rate of evolutionary change in larks.Is it a dog or is it a wolf? 18,000-year-old frozen puppy leaves scientists baffledScientists working in the area have also found carcasses and body parts from other animals such as wolves, mammoths and wooly rhinos.Dussex described such findings as "priceless" as they allow researchers to retrieve DNA and sometimes RNA, a nucleic acid present in all living cells."This in turn will open new opportunities to study the evolution of ice age fauna and understand their responses to climate change over the past 50-10 thousands of years ago," added Dussex.The horned lark was discovered at the same site as an 18,000-year-old frozen puppy, which Dalén and Dussex are also studying.Using carbon dating on the creature's rib bone, experts were able to confirm that the specimen had been frozen for around 18,000 years, but extensive DNA tests have so far been unable to show whether the animal was a dog or a wolf.Scientists can normally tell the difference relatively easy, and researchers hope that further tests on the remains will provide more insight into exactly when dogs were domesticated.
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(CNN)Gareth Bale had a more eventful Sunday than most, scoring a brace and receiving a red card as Real Madrid were held to a 2-2 draw away to Villarreal on Sunday.In doing so, the 30-year-old Welshman ended a 169-day league scoring drought, while becoming only the second Real Madrid player this century -- after Cristiano Ronaldo did the same against Malaga in 2010 -- to score a La Liga double and be sent off in the same match.That Bale is still wearing the white of Los Blancos is noteworthy in its own right. His efforts at the Estadio de la Ceramica came just six weeks after manager Zinedine Zidane said that Bale's departure from the Spanish capital was "very close" and would be "a good thing for everyone."Those comments were met with derision by the player's agent who called Zidane a "disgrace," saying he had shown "no respect for a player that has done so much for Real Madrid."Gareth Bale takes aim against Villareal. His two goals helped Real Madrid earn a draw. A match made in heaven?Read MoreDespite previous hostilities, Zidane knows how to get the best out of his forward. Bale has now scored 37 top-flight goals under Zidane, nine more than he managed for Carlo Ancelotti, who signed Bale as a 24-year-old from Tottenham Hotspur in 2013 for a then world record fee of $120 million.In the six intervening years Bale has struggled to establish himself as a fan favorite.Though there have been moments of brilliance -- a blistering solo goal against Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final in 2014 and an acrobatic overhead stunner against Liverpool in the 2018 Champions League final -- the Madrid faithful have sometimes turned to booing a player who has helped the club lift 13 trophies.With fans' criticism of a poor attitude exacerbated by his love of golf, Bale's days in Spain appeared numbered.Real MAdrid manager Zinedine Zidane gives instructions to his players. Hostilities between Bale and himself seem to have cooled. READ: Romelu Lukaku racially abused by Cagliari fans during Serie A gameBut with three years left on his reported $18.7 million per year contract, top European clubs were turned off by a player limited to just 79 league starts over the last four seasons because of persistent injury problems.As such, the Chinese Super League appeared to be his most likely destination with a reported $1 million per week salary on offer.That would have resulted in a premature step away from the elite table of world football for a player who looked primed to replace Ronaldo as the darling of the Bernabeu. With the European transfer window closing on Monday, Bale, for now at least, remains a Real Madrid player.Zidane happy, for now"I am happy for his goals and we keep going with the positive things," Zidane said of Bale's performance, which rescued a point for his side in the 86th minute. "We can't be happy because we always look to win [but] it's important not to lose."Bale's first was a simple tap-in on the stroke of half time and pointed to a potential positional shift into a more rounded forward, mirroring the transition Ronaldo made from speedy wide player into devastating goal poacher.His second was trademark Bale, cutting back on to his favored left foot before firing home past Andres Fernandez at his near postTwo minutes into stoppage time, Bale found his name in the referee's book for a late lunge on Xavier Quintilla. Two minutes later, a dangerous high boot again made contact with Quintilla and a yellow card was followed by red.Gareth Bale's high boot on Xavier Quintilla earns him a second yellow against Villareal. READ: Arsenal comes from two goals down to earn draw against TottenhamREAD: Liverpool maintains perfect start to the season to stay top of Premier LeagueThis was the first time in 482 senior club appearances that Bale was sent after two bookings, having been shown a straight red on two previous occasions.On top of salvaging a point for Real, Bale draw level with Brazil's Ronaldo with 104 league goals for the club.Moving forwardReal remains unbeaten after three league games but, with just one victory and two draws, finds itself in fifth position, four points behind cross-town rival Atletico, which has a perfect record after three fixtures.Barcelona is currently in eighth position with four points after drawing 2-2 away to Osasuna on Saturday.Real's next assignment comes on Saturday in the early kick-off against Levante. Last year, a late Marcelo goal was not enough to prevent a 2-1 defeat in front of its home fans.Bale was absent that day and his teammates will once again have to do without their polarizing forward, who misses the game through suspension.
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This newly discovered bugs in Java and Python is a big deal today.
The two popular programming languages, Java and Python, contain similar security flaws that can be exploited to send unauthorized emails and bypass any firewall defenses.
And since both the flaws remain unpatched, hackers can take advantage to design potential cyber attack operations against critical networks and infrastructures.
The unpatched flaws actually reside in the way Java and Python programming languages handle File Transfer Protocol (FTP) links, where they don't syntax-check the username parameter, which leads to, what researchers call, protocol injection flaw.
Java/Python FTP Injection to Send Unauthorized SMTP Emails
In a blog post published over the past week, security researcher Alexander Klink detailed the FTP protocol injection vulnerability in Java's XML eXternal Entity (XXE) that allows attackers to inject non-FTP malicious commands inside an FTP connection request.
To demonstrate the attack, Alexander showed how to send an unauthorized email via SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) in an FTP connection attempt, even though the FTP connection failed, as FTP servers does support authentication, but doesn't check for the present of carriage returns (CR) or line feeds (LF) in usernames.
"This attack is particularly interesting in a scenario where you can reach an (unrestricted, maybe not even spam- or malware-filtering) internal mail server from the machine doing the XML parsing," Alexander concluded.
Java/Python FTP Injections Allow to Bypass Firewall
However, two days later in a separate security advisory, security researcher Timothy Morgan from Blindspot Security came forward with his findings, showing more threatening exploitation scenario where the FTP URL handlers in both Java and Python can be used to bypass firewalls.
Morgan said such FTP protocol injection flaw could be used to trick a victim's firewall into accepting TCP connections from the web to the vulnerable host's system on its "high" ports (from 1024 to 65535).
Besides the FTP protocol injection attack, there's reside a decade old security issue in FTP protocol called classic mode FTP – an insecure mechanism of client-server FTP interactions, but many firewall vendors still support it by default.
When a classic mode FTP connection is initiated, the firewall temporarily opens a port – typically between 1024 and 65535 – specified in the PORT command, which introduces security risks.
Using the FTP protocol injection issue in Java and Python, an attacker who knows the targeted host's internal IP address can start a classic mode FTP connection, which attackers can use for nefarious purposes.
Morgan has determined that an attacker can open up one port in the targeted firewall with only three requests:
Identify the victim's internal IP address – this requires an attacker to "send an URL, see how the client behaves, then try another until the attack is successful."
Determine packet alignment and ensure that the PORT command is injected at the right moment, making the attack work.
Exploit the vulnerability.
Each additional request can be used to open up another TCP port.
Easily Exploitable Protocol Injection Flaw
However, the researcher warned that his exploit could be used for man-in-the-middle (MitM) attacks, server-side request forgery (SSRF), an XEE attack and more – and once bypassed the firewall, desktop hosts can be attacked even if they do not have Java installed.
All an attacker need is to convince victims into accessing a malicious Java or Python applications installed on a server to bypass the entire firewall.
"If a desktop user could be convinced to visit a malicious website while Java is installed, even if Java applets are disabled, they could still trigger Java Web Start to parse a JNLP (Java Network Launch Protocol) file," Morgan said. "These files could contain malicious FTP URLs which trigger this bug."
"Also note, that since Java parses JNLP files before presenting the user with any security warnings, the attack can be entirely successful without any indication to the user (unless the browser itself warns the user about Java Web Start being launched)."
According to Morgan, a nearly identical flaw also exists in Python's urllib2 and urllib libraries, although "this injection appears to be limited to attacks via directory names specified in the URL."
Protocol Injection Flaw Is Still Unpatched
Morgan said the FTP protocol injection flaw was reported to the Python team in January 2016 and Oracle in November 2016 by his company, but neither of the two has issued any update to address the issue.
Morgan has developed a proof-of-concept (PoC) exploit but is currently holding back publication of his exploit until Oracle and Python respond to the disclosure and release patches.
The Morgan's exploit has successfully been tested against Palo Alto Networks and Cisco ASA firewalls, though researchers believe many commercial firewalls are also vulnerable to FTP stream injection attacks.
So until patches become available, Morgan suggests users uninstall Java on their desktops and in browsers, as well as disable support for "classic mode" FTP on all firewalls.
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A Russian man accused of hacking LinkedIn, Dropbox, and Formspring in 2012 and possibly compromising personal details of over 100 million users, has pleaded not guilty in a U.S. federal court after being extradited from the Czech Republic.
Yevgeniy Aleksandrovich Nikulin, 30, of Moscow was arrested in Prague on October 5, 2016, by Interpol agents working in collaboration with the FBI, but he was recently extradited to the United States from the Czech Republic on Thursday for his first appearance in federal court.
Nikulin's arrest started an extradition battle between the United States and Russia, where he faces significantly lesser criminal charges of stealing $3,450 via Webmoney in 2009. But the Czech Republic ruled in favor of the United States.
In the U.S., Nikulin is facing:
3 counts of computer intrusion
2 counts of intentional transmission of information, code, or command causing damage to a protected computer
2 counts of aggravated identity theft
1 count of trafficking in unauthorized access devices
1 count of conspiracy
According to the maximum penalties for each count, Nikulin faces a maximum of 32 years in prison and a massive fine of more than $1 Million.
The U.S. Justice Department accused Nikulin of allegedly hacking into computers belonging to three American social media firms, including LinkedIn, the online cloud storage platform Dropbox and now-defunct social-networking firm Formspring.
Nikulin reportedly gained access to LinkedIn's network between March 3 and March 4, 2012, Dropbox between May 14 and July 25, 2012, and Formspring between June 13 and June 29, 2012.
The hacker allegedly stole accounts of more than 117 Million LinkedIn users and more than 68 Million Dropbox users. Authorities also say that after stealing data from the three companies, Nikulin worked with unnamed co-conspirators to sell the stolen data.
Besides hacking into the three social media firms, the Justice Department also accused Nikulin of allegedly gaining access to credentials belonging to LinkedIn and Formspring employees, which helped him carry out the computer hacks.
Nikulin appeared in Federal District Court in San Francisco on Friday and pleaded not guilty to the charges against him, the New York times reported.
"This is deeply troubling behavior once again emanating from Russia," said Attorney General Jeff Sessions in a statement. "We will not tolerate criminal cyber-attacks and will make it a priority to investigate and prosecute these crimes, regardless of the country where they originate."
Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley scheduled Nikulin's next court appearance for status on April 2, 2018, and scheduled a detention hearing for April 4, 2018.
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Story highlightsGiGi's Playhouse has grown to more than 30 educational centersAfter her daughter was born with Down syndrome, Nancy Gianni knew other families needed helpNominate a CNN Hero hereHoffman Estates, Illinois (CNN)When Nancy Gianni and her husband welcomed their third child in 2002, they expected it to be a joyous occasion.But their bliss was dampened by unexpected news: Their newborn daughter, GiGi, had Down syndrome. Gianni immediately noticed the change in attitudes around her."Everybody was saying they were sorry. Nobody was having eye contact with us anymore," she said. "(There was) no joy."CNN Hero Nancy GianniSoon after the couple brought GiGi home, they realized she wasn't all that different from their other children. But they knew she would need some extra support.Read MoreSo Gianni set out to create a community for families like hers, "a place where people can walk in and celebrate their diagnosis from the minute they find out," she said. "A place to learn, a place to grow."Today, her nonprofit, GiGi's Playhouse, has grown to a network of more than 30 educational centers across the United States and Mexico. Each location provides a host of free programs ranging from toddler classes to speech therapy -- even Zumba workouts.Since 2003, Gianni's efforts have helped more than 25,000 children and adults with Down syndrome reach their potential."I want to show people the beauty in our kids so they can understand that they are so much more than a diagnosis," Gianni said.CNN's Kathleen Toner spoke with Gianni about her work. Below is an edited version of their conversation.CNN: What's it like at GiGi's Playhouse?Nancy Gianni: To come to a place where every other parent is going through the same thing is life-changing. When you walk in the doors at GiGi's, the first thing you get is a hug. You just feel the love. Whether it's a mom with a prenatal diagnosis or a family who just had a really bad experience with bullying, they come in and get re-energized. And for the siblings, it's a place to know they're not alone.Every single thing that we do has fun, learning and therapy built right into it. We are constantly honing their skills and their muscles, and they're usually having so much fun, they don't even realize that it's happening. There's even developmental skills in blowing bubbles -- you're working muscles in your mouth and it helps them with their speech. JUST WATCHEDCNN Hero Nancy Gianni: A full lifeReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHCNN Hero Nancy Gianni: A full life 02:43We want our families to reach for the stars every day, and we give them the tools to do that. CNN: Two years ago, you started offering a new program for adults with Down syndrome.Gianni: We were seeing a big void in what was being offered to them as far as any type of career, and that's when we started GiGi University. The philosophy is that you have to take care of yourself from the inside out. A lot of our adults struggle with obesity and low muscle tone, so with the fitness and nutrition piece (of the program), they realize by feeding their body right, by working out, they are going to feel better.When they finish, they go into an internship in our retail store and café. There, they use their skills -- eye contact, greeting a customer -- and people are able to look at them as an employee. For the parents of a young child with Down syndrome, to see the adults succeeding is so important.When you believe in somebody, the outcomes are amazing, and they want more. GiGi's isn't about what happens here; it's about going out into the world and showing what we can do.GiGi's Playhouse helps people with Down syndrome develop job and life skillsCNN: How do your centers help change perceptions in the larger community?Gianni: GiGi's is open to the public, so they can see our kids and adults as leaders. When volunteers come in here, some of them are Cub Scouts just coming in to get their patch, but they're actually learning about the struggles that these guys go through. And they learn that we're more alike than we are different ... that just because somebody might have a limitation, that doesn't define who they are. We're trying to spread a global message of acceptance for all, beyond Down syndrome.CNN: How is your daughter GiGi doing?Gianni: GiGi is now 13 years old. She is into every type of social media, hip-hop, ballet. She loves jazz, reading. She loves to learn. And she has changed my perceptions of what (people with Down syndrome) can achieve.I remember she wanted to be in baseball again when she was in first grade. I thought, "Maybe it's too much -- she's going to get hit by that ball." Well, the first time at batting practice, she just whacked that thing. She showed me: "Put me in, coach! I can do anything."As parents, I think we sometimes put those limitations on just to soften the blow if it doesn't happen, and she showed me to stop doing that. Honestly, the sky is the limit for her.Want to get involved? Check out the GiGi's Playhouse website and see how to help.To donate to GiGi's Playhouse, click the CrowdRise widget below.Fundraising Websites - Crowdrise
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(CNN)Football's concussion protocols have been criticized after Arsenal defender David Luiz was allowed to continue playing following a sickening clash of heads with Wolves striker Raul Jimenez in Sunday's Premier League match.Just minutes after returning to the pitch, blood began seeping through the bandage Arsenal medical staff had wrapped around Luiz's head.After the match Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta said that Luiz was substituted at halftime because he felt "uncomfortable heading the ball."Wolves confirmed on Monday that Jimenez underwent successful surgery on a fractured skull.Arteta insisted that the doctors "made all the tests and followed all the protocols" to ensure it was safe for Luiz to continue and said the Brazilian never lost consciousness.Read MoreHowever, Headway, a UK charity that works to improve life after brain injury, said in a statement after the match that loss of consciousness is a factor in only 10% of all concussion cases."We have repeatedly warned about the risks to players and the importance of elite-level sport setting a good example for impressionable younger players to follow," said Luke Griggs, Deputy Chief Executive at Headway."Too often in football, we see players returning to the pitch having undergone a concussion assessment -- only to be withdrawn a few minutes later when it is clear that they are not fit to continue.READ: International football's concussion protocols 'are the worst in the world'David Luiz was allowed to continue but was substituted at half time."That is the very reason why we urgently need temporary concussion substitutes in football. You simply cannot take a risk with head injuries."They are not like muscular injuries where you can put a player back on 'to see if they can run it off.' One further blow to the head when concussed could have serious consequences."'Archaic'Football's concussion protocols have increasingly come under the spotlight in recent years.While other sports such as rugby, cricket and American football have adapted their rules to allow temporary substitutions, which ensure players with head injuries can be properly assessed for concussion, football's protocols in May 2019 were described by Chris Nowinski, co-founder and CEO of the Concussion Legacy Foundation, as "archaic" and "the worst in the world."In October of last year, the International Football Association Board (IFAB) -- the organization responsible for "preserving and developing" the rules of the game -- held a meeting in Zurich to discuss football's protocols, notably the addition of a temporary substitute to allow for a 10-minute concussion assessment window instead of the current three-minute test.IFAB decided an expert group should be tasked with finding a solution taking into account "both player welfare and the need to ensure sporting fairness," it said in a statement at the time.More than 13 months later, however, IFAB said in a November statement that the "main proposed principles" for additional substitutions submitted by its Concussion Expert Group will "be explored further" and that trials could begin in January."The IFAB takes head injuries in football matches very seriously as protecting the health of players is -- and will remain -- a top priority in developing the Laws of the Game," an IFAB spokesperson told CNN."The IFAB has made tackling this issue a key objective and has established a Concussion Expert Group that has discussed and evaluated research on the topic of concussion and head injuries. "Given the very complex nature of this topic, it has been clear from the beginning that concrete decisions related to the Laws of the Game must be well thought through and examined from all different stakeholder perspectives (medical concussion experts, team doctors, player representatives, coaches, competition organizers, refereeing and Laws of the Game experts, etc.)."JUST WATCHEDConcussion rule reviewed in footballReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHConcussion rule reviewed in football 02:37IFAB says detailed protocols regarding additional permanent concussions substitutions are currently being finalized and will be considered by IFAB's board of directors at a December 16 meeting. The board will decide whether extensive trials will be approved for January 2021.The English Football Association (FA) said it "welcomes" and "will support" the proposed trials of an additional permanent concussion substitution."Player welfare is paramount and we believe that this is an important step to help support players, clubs and medical teams when identifying and managing head injuries and incidents of concussion during a game," an FA spokesperson said on Twitter.However, FIFPro -- the worldwide representative organization for professional footballers -- doesn't believe permanent substitutions are the right way forward and would instead prefer temporary substitutions."We have pushed for the trial of temporary substitutions, as you see in Rugby Union, for instance, and this trial was not well received," Dr. Vincent Gouttebarge, FIFPro's chief medical officer, told Sky. "At present times, they want to try first permanent concussion substitutions."Again, it is a move forward, but nevertheless I don't think we are going to solve the problem with this permanent substitution because it does not provide the medical team with sufficient time to assess on field and off field the player's potential concussion.David Luiz needed stitches for the cut sustained in the collision."I hope that football stakeholders will not have to wait [for] a very high profile case with a very severe consequence in order to move forward. "Football is perhaps one of the sports that is most conservative in terms of advancements, by comparison to other sports. We would have preferred to see some measures applied yesterday rather than tomorrow."The Premier League has previously said it wants to be involved in the trial and is waiting on the full IFAB proposal to make a decision on the next steps."The question that has to be asked is had the concussion substitutes rule been in place, would Luiz have been allowed to return to the field of play?" added Headway's Griggs. "Would that extra time in the treatment room have led to a different decision being made?"The concussion protocol clearly states that ... 'anyone with a suspected concussion must be immediately removed from play', while the sport continues to promote an 'if in doubt, sit it out' approach to head injuries."Time and time again we are seeing this rhetoric not being borne out by actions on the pitch. Something is not right. This cannot be allowed to continue. How many warnings does football need?"Aleks Klosok contributed to this reporting
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Ransomware has been around for a few years, but it has become an albatross around everyone's neck, targeting big businesses, hospitals, financial institutions and individuals worldwide and extorting millions of dollars.
Last year, we saw some major ransomware outbreaks, including WannaCry and NotPetya, which wreaked havoc across the world, hitting hundreds of thousands of computers and business networks worldwide.
From small to mid-range businesses, Microsoft Office 365 remains the most widely used and fastest-growing work office suite, so it's no surprise that it has become a primary target for viruses, ransomware, and phishing scams.
In fact, most strains of ransomware target Microsoft productivity apps such as Word, Excel and encrypt sensitive data to hold the company hostage until the ransom is paid.
Now, to combat such cyber attacks, Microsoft has announced some new security features for Office 365 that can help users mitigate the damage done by ransomware and other malware infections.
The new features were initially introduced for OneDrive for Business, but that the company is now rolling them out to anyone who has signed up for an Office 365 Home or Personal subscription, Microsoft Office blog says.
Here below I have briefed the list of new features:
File Recovery and Anti-Ransomware
Files Restore—Microsoft Office 365 now allows users to restore entire OneDrive to a previous point in time within the last 30 days. This feature can be used to recover files from an accidental mass delete, file corruption, ransomware, or any catastrophic event.
Ransomware detection & recovery—Office 365 had also introduced a new security feature that detects ransomware attacks and alerts you through an email, mobile, or desktop notification while helping you restore your OneDrive to a point before the malware compromised files.
Security and Privacy Features
Office 365 has added three new features to help keep your confidential or personal data (such as tax documents, family budgets, or a new business proposal) secure and private when sharing them online.
Password protected sharing links—This feature allows you to set a password for your shared file and folders, preventing unauthorized access even if your recipient accidentally forwards protected documents to others.
Email encryption—This feature allows users to send/receive end-to-end encrypted emails in Outlook over a secure connection, providing additional protection to minimize the threat of being intercepted.
Prevent forwarding—Microsoft now enables you to restrict your email recipients from forwarding or copying emails you send to them from Outlook. Besides this, any MS Office document attached to your emails will remain encrypted even after downloading, so if the recipient shares your attachment with others, they will not be able to open it.
Advanced Protection from Viruses and Cybercrime
Advanced link checking in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint—Office 365 also offers built-in real-time web protection, which monitors every link you click in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint and notifies you if it is suspicious.
File Recovery and Anti-Ransomware features began rolling out starting today and will be available to all Office 365 users soon, while features to help keep your information secure and private (including password protected sharing links, email encryption, and prevent forwarding) will start rolling out in the coming weeks.
Advanced link checking and advanced attachment scanning are already available in MS Outlook that protects you from previously unseen viruses and phishing scams in real-time. However, advanced link checking in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint will roll out in the second half of 2018.
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Story highlightsFemale F1 test driver Maria de Villota admits she'd like a family one dayAs a youngster the Spaniard joined racing father Emilio on the track Her first taste of racing was as a five-year-old beating her brother go-kartingShe admits she has had to work hard to compete with menFor any professional woman, finding the right balance between work and family is never any easy task. And when your office job is racing Formula One cars for a living, the leap between the daily grind and bouncing baby feels even wider. It's a juggling act Maria de Villota will one day tackle -- she's just got a few things to do on the track first.De Villota became the first female driver in Formula One in 20 years after joining Russian team Marussia in March in a testing role.She now works alongside Marussia's newly-formed lineup of German veteran Timo Glock and French rookie Charles Pic, and plans to get behind the wheel during the 2012 season.The 32-year-old Spaniard admitted it's been a hard slog to get there -- and she's not going to give it up for a baby anytime soon. Photos: F1 family: The De Villotas Photos: F1 family: The De VillotasMaria de Villota: 1980-2013 – Former Formula One test driver Maria de Villota passed away aged 33. "It is presumed to be death by natural causes," a National Police spokeswoman said Friday.Hide Caption 1 of 4 Photos: F1 family: The De VillotasJoining the men – Spain's De Villota was the first female driver to join a Formula One team in 20 years.Hide Caption 2 of 4 Photos: F1 family: The De VillotasF1 family – Maria's father Emilio de Villota is a pilot and former racing driver. He runs his own team in the Spanish Formula Three championship.Hide Caption 3 of 4 Photos: F1 family: The De VillotasLike father, like daughter? – He entered 15 Formula One races between 1976 and 1982, but qualified to start only two of them with a best finish of 13th.Hide Caption 4 of 4 Photos: Formula One's Susie Wolff Photos: Formula One's Susie WolffStart your engines – Susie Wolff, 29, joined Williams F1 as a development driver in April.Hide Caption 1 of 7 Photos: Formula One's Susie WolffIn Shanghai for the 2012 Chinese Grand Prix in April, Wolff with the Williams F1 team (L-R): Pastor Maldonado, Wolff, Bruno Senna and fellow development driver Valtteri Bottas.Hide Caption 2 of 7 Photos: Formula One's Susie WolffAt a DTM touring car presentation in Wiesbaden, Germany.Hide Caption 3 of 7 Photos: Formula One's Susie WolffSigning autographs for fans -- in 2010, Wolff finished ahead of David Coulthard and Ralph Schumacher in the DTM championship.Hide Caption 4 of 7 Photos: Formula One's Susie WolffWith husband Toto Wolff, a Williams F1 board member.Hide Caption 5 of 7 Photos: Formula One's Susie WolffIn the driver's seat: Wolff with tennis player Mansour Bahrami at the 2010 Laureus Sports Awards in Abu Dhabi. Hide Caption 6 of 7 Photos: Formula One's Susie WolffAt the 2006 DTM championship in Germany. In motorsport, Wolff says, you have to put up an emotional wall. "My family say when they see me on a race weekend, I'm a different person."Hide Caption 7 of 7 Photos: Women in Formula One Photos: Women in Formula OneDivina Galica – Divina Galica made her Formula One debut at the 1976 British Grand Prix. Despite entering three grands prix, the British driver did not qualify for a race.Hide Caption 1 of 6 Photos: Women in Formula OneQueen of speed – Before discovering motorsport, Galica (far right) was an Olympic skier. She was captain of the British ski team and competed at the Winter Olympics in 1964, 1968 and 1972. Until March 2007, Galica held the female British speed skating record, clocking 125 miles per hour in 1994.Hide Caption 2 of 6 Photos: Women in Formula OneMaria Teresa de Filippis – Maria Teresa de Filippis was a true pioneer, becoming the first woman to enter a grand prix at Monaco in 1958. One month later, the Italian was the first female driver to finish a race, coming last at the Belgian Grand Prix.Hide Caption 3 of 6 Photos: Women in Formula OneLella Lombardi – Filippis was succeeded by compatriot Lella Lombardi, who made her own piece of F1 history in 1975. While driving for March at that year's Spanish Grand Prix, Lombardi became the first, and only, woman to register a point-scoring finish in a grand prix.Hide Caption 4 of 6 Photos: Women in Formula OneDesire Wilson – South African driver Desire Wilson failed to qualify for the 1980 British Grand Prix while competing for Brands Hatch Racing. She did take part in the 1981 South African Grand Prix, but the race was later stricken from F1 records for political reasons.Hide Caption 5 of 6 Photos: Women in Formula OneGiovanna Amati – Giovanna Amati was the last female driver to enter a grand prix. The Italian failed to qualify for the first three races of 1992 season while representing the Brabham team.Hide Caption 6 of 6"My family is huge and we are all the time together. Of course I would like to have the same thing for me. If you have a baby, I don't know how my body, my mind, is going to react," she told CNN."If one day I do make that decision I'll make sure that all my racing goals are achieved. I need to make sure of what I'm thinking -- which is being competitive and not about a little kid waiting at home for me."But de Villota is proof that kids and the track can mix, having grown up the daughter of former F1 driver Emilio de Villota."He was a driver in the late '70s, early '80s and I used to go to see him race. I remember the moment when he would tell me, 'Please hold my helmet.' It was really good having that chance being beside him," she said."I think he didn't want me to be a racing driver but in the end I just wanted to be like him."Considering her racing family, it's no surprise De Villota took to the track at an early age -- an experience that gave her a taste of her dream job."My racing career started in Madrid, where I was born, in a go-kart track," she said."I remember it was Christmas time and my brother had a go-kart and I had my first drive that day. I was around five and I just went all the way into the front."He was crying and saying, 'You're crazy, I'm not going to share with you anymore.' "De Villota is the first woman to be part of the elite motorsport since Italy's Giovanni Amati entered three grands prix for Brabham in 1992, but failed to qualify for a race.Just weeks after De Villota signed with Marussia, 29-year-old Briton Susie Wolff joined Williams as a test driver.Wolff is just the seventh female F1 driver in the 60-year history of the sport and her recruitment, along with De Villota, was seen as an important step forward in the gender divide.It hasn't been an easy ride, though."Being a woman didn't stop me. I realized I could do it and I could do it good," De Villota said."Endurance has been tough because we're not as strong as men. I had to work really hard in order to make sure I could be strong enough to be driving Formula One."
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(CNN)The developer of the Keystone XL pipeline announced Wednesday it is pulling the plug on the controversial project after the Biden administration revoked its permit in January.TC Energy, the Canadian company behind the project, said it decided to terminate the project after a comprehensive review of its options and consulting with the government of Alberta, Canada. The company said it would coordinate with regulators, stakeholders and Indigenous groups to ensure a safe exit from the project.The cancellation ends more than a decade of controversy over the pipeline and marks a big win for environmentalists who argued the project threatened the environment and would only worsen the climate crisis.The project aimed to carry oil from the tar sands of Canada into the United States, and it has been a political football for years.Biden administration to suspend oil and gas drilling leases in Arctic refuge, undoing a Trump-era decisionOn his first day in the White House, President Joe Biden revoked the permit his predecessor granted to Keystone XL, and also moved to re-enter the United States in the Paris climate agreement. TC Energy warned at the time that the decision by Biden would "directly lead to the layoff of thousands of union workers."Read MoreThe end of Keystone XL will add to the pressure on Biden from environmentalists to terminate other projects, including Line 3 and the Dakota Access pipeline."The cancellation of Keystone XL is a reminder that this project was never needed and never in the public interest, and that it is time for the fossil fuel era to rapidly come to a close," David Turnbull, strategic communications director with Oil Change International, said in a statement.The American Petroleum Institute, the oil and gas industry's largest trade group, expressed disappointment over the news.What happened to two small South Dakota towns after Biden revoked the Keystone XL Pipeline permit"It's unfortunate that political obstructionism led to the termination of the Keystone XL Pipeline," said Robin Rorick, vice president of midstream and industry operations at the API. "This is a blow to U.S. energy security and a blow to the thousands of good-paying union jobs this project would have supported."Marty Durbin, president of the Chamber of Commerce's Global Energy Institute, said the decision to terminate the project was understandable given the administration's decision, but that ultimately "the American people will lose the most by not having access to affordable and reliable energy that would have been safely and efficiently transported by the pipeline."Environmental groups, however, cheered the news. "The termination of this zombie pipeline sets precedent for President Biden and polluters to stop Line 3, Dakota Access, and all fossil fuel projects," Kendall Mackey, campaign manager of 350.org's Keep It in the Ground campaign, said in a statement.Activists gave much of the credit for the termination of the Keystone XL pipeline to members of Indigenous communities who worked for years to see this goal to fruition. "After more than 10 years of organizing we have finally defeated an oil giant, Keystone XL is dead!" the nonprofit Indigenous Environmental Network said in a statement. "We stood hand-in-hand to protect the next seven generations of life, the water and our communities from this dirty tar sands pipeline."
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Cyberattacks targeting healthcare organizations have spiked by 45% since November 2020 as COVID-19 cases continue to increase globally.
According to a new report published by Check Point Research today and shared with The Hacker News, this increase has made the sector the most targeted industry by cybercriminals when compared to an overall 22% increase in cyberattacks across all industry sectors worldwide seen during the same time period.
The average number of weekly attacks in the healthcare sector reached 626 per organization in November as opposed to 430 the previous month, with attack vectors ranging from ransomware, botnets, remote code execution, and distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks.
Ransomware attacks against hospitals also marked their biggest jump, with Ryuk and Sodinokibi emerging as the primary ransomware variants employed by various criminal groups.
"The usage of Ryuk emphasizes the trend of having more targeted and tailored ransomware attacks rather than using a massive spam campaign, which allows the attackers to make sure they hit the most critical parts of the organization and have a higher chance of getting paid," Omer Dembinsky, Check Point's manager of data intelligence, said.
Central Europe topped the list of regions impacted by the increase in attacks against healthcare organizations with a 145% uptick in November, followed by East Asia (up 137%) and Latin America (up 112% increase). Europe and North America saw increases of 67% and 37% respectively.
The development follows a joint advisory from the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) last October, warning of an "increased and imminent cybercrime threat to U.S. hospitals and healthcare providers."
The alert cautioned of adversaries targeting the Healthcare and Public Health (HPH) sector with TrickBot and BazarLoader malware, resulting in ransomware infections, data theft, and the disruption of healthcare services.
Over the past two months, state-sponsored actors have ramped up their cyber assaults against government health ministries and companies involved in COVID-19 vaccine distribution, not to mention staging ransomware attacks on pharmaceutical firms such as Dr. Reddy's Laboratories that are engaged in vaccine trials.
Ransomware cases, in particular, have capitalized on the coronavirus pandemic, not least because it boosts the likelihood that hospitals will meet attackers' demands to quickly recover access to critical systems and provide care to patients. The University of California paid the hackers 116 bitcoin ($1.14 million) after a NetWalker attack on its systems back in June.
"Medical services and research organizations [have become] targets for attacks seeking to steal valuable commercial and professional information, or to disrupt vital research operations," the researchers concluded.
"As the world's attention continues to focus on dealing with the pandemic, cybercriminals will also continue to use and try to exploit that focus for their own illegal purposes — so it's essential that both organizations and individuals maintain good cyber-hygiene to protect themselves against Covid-related online crime."
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Story highlightsU.S. officials told CNN that FBI corruption investigation into FIFA's Sepp Blatter continuesCNN legal analyst: It's clear from investigation's path that Blatter "has a big target on his back"Ex-FIFA VP promises to "no longer keep secrets" after reports implicate Blatter deputy (CNN)Seven FIFA officials have been placed in handcuffs and two more are the subject of Interpol wanted persons alerts, and while the world waits for the next domino to fall in the largest scandal to rock soccer's governing body, a question looms. Will FIFA President Sepp Blatter go down? "It was clear from (U.S.) Attorney General Loretta Lynch's famous press conference; it is clear from how this investigation is unfolding that Sepp Blatter has a big target on his back," CNN senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin said. "He is under investigation to be criminally prosecuted. There's no doubt about that." Swiss authorities have said Blatter is not part of their investigation into the bidding processes for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, but U.S. officials told CNN this week that the FBI corruption investigation into FIFA's president continues. Lynch, for her part, declined to provide any specifics on Blatter during her May 27 news conference, but asked if the probe had cleared Blatter, she did not say no. Read More"I'm not able to comment further on Mr. Blatter's status," she replied. JUST WATCHEDBlatter resignation casts doubt on Russian World CupReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHBlatter resignation casts doubt on Russian World Cup 01:55This was after she had announced a 47-count indictment alleging that 14 defendants had enriched themselves for a generation at the expense of the Beautiful Game. Blatter was not among those charged and has denied any wrongdoing.Ties that bindThe defendants included FIFA officials certain to be close to Blatter, including two FIFA vice presidents, a former vice president, executive committee members, heads of soccer's national associations and current and former presidents of the game's regional confederations. The former vice president in the bunch, Jack Warner, who once helmed the Caribbean Football Union and CONCACAF, the confederation governing the Caribbean and North and Central America, could be the linchpin in the U.S. government's case as he's indicated a willingness to roll on Blatter. In a rambling political ad that aired in his native Trinidad and Tobago, where he is a member of Parliament, Warner fired a shot at the United States -- not his first -- implying that the Americans are being vindictive because they lost the rights to host the 2022 World Cup to a Muslim nation, Qatar, and "as far as they are concerned Muslims are not important."In the same breath, curiously, the former soccer bureaucrat said he had prepared documents on FIFA's transactions, including checks and corroborated statements. The documents are now in "respected hands," he said, and "there can be no turning back."JUST WATCHEDEx-FIFA VP defends himself by quoting The OnionReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHEx-FIFA VP defends himself by quoting The Onion 03:20Promising to "no longer keep secrets," Warner said he "also will give them my knowledge of vital transactions at FIFA including, but not limited to Sepp Blatter. I have been there for 30 consecutive years. I was a heartbeat away from Blatter."The ad was titled "Jack Warner: The Gloves Are Off," indicative of a man who knows he's in for a fight against an autonomous governing body that tallied $338 million in net profits from 2011 to 2014, has $1.5 billion in reserves and has survived its share of scandals. He closed his ad, saying, "Blatter knows why he fell, and if there's one other person who knows, I do."In the Justice Department announcement last month, it was revealed that Warner's sons, Daryll and Daryan, each pleaded guilty in 2013 to charges, including wire fraud and structuring of financial transactions. Their convictions were unsealed last month.Both have cooperated with the U.S. attorney's office for the Eastern District of New York, as has Chuck Blazer, who was general secretary of CONCACAF when Jack Warner was president. Blazer detailed a series of bribes paid to FIFA executives ahead of the 1998 and 2010 World Cups.A re-election before resigningBlatter, who has said he will remain in office until at least December, the earliest point at which FIFA can organize a vote to elect his successor, defiantly stood for re-election only last week. Michel Platini, president of UEFA, European soccer's governing body, said he asked Blatter to step down the day before the election, but Blatter told him, "It's too late." Blatter then took to a stage at FIFA's World Congress in Zurich, Switzerland, to blame FIFA corruption on "a few" and call for their punishment as FIFA rebuilds its reputation. Four days later, though, The New York Times released a bombshell. Citing U.S. officials and others briefed on the case, the newspaper reported Monday that an anonymous "high-ranking FIFA official" whom prosecutors implicated in an alleged $10 million bribe had been identified as FIFA Secretary General Jérôme Valcke, Blatter's top lieutenant. According to the indictment, South Africa was willing to pay $10 million to the Caribbean Football Union "to support the African diaspora" in exchange for Warner's and two other conspirators' votes to put the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, instead of Morocco. The South African bid committee has denied any impropriety in the payment.JUST WATCHEDRebuilding FIFA's reputationReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHRebuilding FIFA's reputation 03:10The official in early 2008 "caused" three payments totaling $10 million to "accounts held in the name of CFU and CONCACAF, but controlled by the defendant Jack Warner," the indictment alleges. If The Times' sources are correct, this is as close as the money trail has been to Blatter's door. Valcke has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, and he has not been accused in any investigation. FIFA told the Times that a now-deceased former finance committee chairman authorized the payment. Still, the day after Valcke was linked to the payment, and four days after winning re-election when Jordan's Prince Ali bin al-Hussein bowed out of the contest, Blatter stepped down. "While I have a mandate from the membership of FIFA, I do not feel that I have a mandate from the entire world of football -- the fans, the players, the clubs, the people who live, breathe and love football as much as we all do at FIFA," he said, vowing to devote his remaining time in office to reform. Valcke may be the keySimon Chadwick, a professor of sport business strategy and marketing at Coventry University, said the embattled 79-year-old's statement appears to be little more than a sleight of hand. "At first glance the tipping point for Blatter's resignation would seem to have been the disclosure of a letter sent by the South African Football Association (SAFA) to FIFA secretary general Jérôme Valcke," Chadwick wrote in a Wednesday column. "FIFA initially claimed Valcke had never been in receipt of such a letter, but the appearance of the document clearly showed otherwise."JUST WATCHEDSierra Leone official: Separate Blatter and FIFA ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHSierra Leone official: Separate Blatter and FIFA 02:41The letter is important because it indicates SAFA President Molefi Oliphant told Valcke to instruct FIFA to make the $10 million payment to Warner and deduct the payment that FIFA had earmarked for South Africa's World Cup, the professor wrote."Sepp Blatter had always claimed that he was unaware of any corrupt activity taking place inside FIFA. The problem is Valcke has been his deputy and a trusted adviser. If Valcke is under suspicion, then Blatter himself is becoming increasingly exposed to scrutiny. And with the FBI circling and world opinion turning against him, Blatter has recently been running out of options, excuses and the loving support of his fellow FIFA family members," Chadwick wroteIf the feds want to question Blatter, don't expect him to divulge much, CNN's Toobin said. "If Sepp Blatter gets the advice of any good lawyer in the United States, he will certainly be told, 'Don't say anything at all,' " he said. But observers can expect more indictments, and U.S. authorities will do their best to convince anyone they arrest to dish dirt on Blatter and his cohorts, Toobin said. "More people will be charged. I don't know if Sepp Blatter will be charged, but certainly other people will be charged, and the way criminal investigations work is they flip people. They get people on the lower levels to talk about people higher up, and the target is clearly Sepp Blatter at this point."Follow @eliottcnn Photos: Sepp Blatter: A controversial leaderA controversial leader – FIFA president Sepp Blatter's 2011 remarks on racism in football -- that on-pitch abuse can be solved with a handshake -- were just one of a series of controversial quotes to be attributed to the head of world soccer. Hide Caption 1 of 11 Photos: Sepp Blatter: A controversial leaderTighter shorts for women? – In 2004, Blatter -- seen here with Brazil star Marta -- angered female footballers with his suggestion for how the women's game could be made more appealing. "They could, for example, have tighter shorts," said the Swiss. "Let the women play in more feminine clothes like they do in volleyball."Hide Caption 2 of 11 Photos: Sepp Blatter: A controversial leaderFootball slavery? – In 2008 Blatter was ridiculed after defending the desire of Manchester United's highly-paid star Cristiano Ronaldo to join Real Madrid. He said: "I think in football there's too much modern slavery in transferring players or buying players here and there, and putting them somewhere." In 2013 he had to apologize to Ronaldo after a bizarre impersonation of the Madrid star.Hide Caption 3 of 11 Photos: Sepp Blatter: A controversial leaderGoal-line technology U-turn – Blatter performed a U-turn on the use of goal-line technology and apologized to the English Football Association after an incorrect decision during the 2010 World Cup. Despite replays showing a shot from England's Frank Lampard had clearly crossed the line in the last-16 clash with Germany, the goal was not awarded.Hide Caption 4 of 11 Photos: Sepp Blatter: A controversial leaderExcusez-moi? – Blatter had earlier refused to take action when Thierry Henry's blatant handball denied the Republic of Ireland a place at the 2010 World Cup finals. Even the France striker admitted the fairest solution was to replay the playoff match.Hide Caption 5 of 11 Photos: Sepp Blatter: A controversial leader"Refrain from sexual activity" – In December 2010, Blatter was heavily criticized for suggesting gay football fans should "refrain from sexual activity" if they wished to attend the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where homosexuality is illegal. Blatter later apologized and said it had not been his intention to offend or discriminate.Hide Caption 6 of 11 Photos: Sepp Blatter: A controversial leaderWinter World Cup? – Blatter clashed with fellow members of FIFA's executive committee when he suggested the 2022 FIFA World Cup could be played in January to avoid high temperatures in Qatar. He said the move would "protect the players and also the spectators." Qatar flatly rejected Blatter's suggestion at the time, but FIFA is now reviewing whether to adopt it.Hide Caption 7 of 11 Photos: Sepp Blatter: A controversial leaderRotten eggs? – In December 2010 Blatter insisted that FIFA was "not corrupt ... there are no rotten eggs" despite two of his executive committee members -- Amos Adamu, pictured, and Reynald Temarii -- being suspended for accepting bribes in the lead-up to the vote for awarding hosting rights for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. He called England "bad losers" after losing out to Russia. Hide Caption 8 of 11 Photos: Sepp Blatter: A controversial leaderBest of enemies? – Blatter stood unopposed for re-election in July after his former ally Mohamed bin Hammam quit the race days before the ballot after being accused of offering cash for votes. The Qatari, a top FIFA official, has been banned from football.Hide Caption 9 of 11 Photos: Sepp Blatter: A controversial leaderCharges dropped – Blatter faced a criminal investigation after winning the 2002 FIFA presidential election, being accused of financial mismanagement by 11 former members of the ruling body's executive committee, including his 1998 election rival Lennart Johansson, right. However, prosecutors dropped the case due to a lack of evidence.Hide Caption 10 of 11 Photos: Sepp Blatter: A controversial leaderWe need to talk about Kevin – In January 2013, AC Milan midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng led his team off the pitch after being subjected to racist chanting. His actions were hailed across the world. But Blatter was more cautious about the issue, refusing to support the move. "I don't think you can run away, because eventually you can run away if you lose a match," he said in an interview with a newspaper in the UAE. "This issue is a very touchy subject, but I repeat there is zero tolerance of racism in the stadium; we have to go against that." Others, like AC Milan president Silvio Berlusconi, have disagreed with him. "I am of the opposite view (to Blatter)," said Berlusconi. "I thanked and congratulated my players for their decision to leave the field." Hide Caption 11 of 11Complete coverage of the FIFA controversyCNN's Laura Smith-Spark and Christiane Amanpour contributed to this report.
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An Iranian threat actor has unleashed a new cyberespionage campaign against a possible Lebanese target with a backdoor capable of exfiltrating sensitive information from compromised systems.
Cybersecurity firm Check Point attributed the operation to APT34, citing similarities with previous techniques used by the threat actor as well as based on its pattern of victimology.
APT34 (aka OilRig) is known for its reconnaissance campaigns aligned with the strategic interests of Iran, primarily hitting financial, government, energy, chemical, and telecommunications industries in the Middle East.
The group typically resorts to targeting individuals through the use of booby-trapped job offer documents, delivered directly to the victims via LinkedIn messages. Although the latest campaign bears some of the same hallmarks, the exact mode of delivery remains unclear as yet.
The Word document analyzed by Check Point — which was uploaded to VirusTotal from Lebanon on January 10 — claims to offer information about different positions at a U.S.-based consulting firm named Ntiva IT, only to trigger the infection chain upon activating the embedded malicious macros, ultimately resulting in the deployment of a backdoor called "SideTwist."
Aside from gathering basic information about the victim's machine, the backdoor establishes connections with a remote server to await additional commands that allow it to download files from the server, upload arbitrary files, and execute shell commands, the results of which are posted back to the server.
Check Point notes that the use of new backdoor points to the group's ongoing efforts to overhaul and update their payload arsenal in the wake of a 2019 leak of its hacking tools, which also doxxed several officers of the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence who were involved with APT34 operations.
"Iran backed APT34 shows no sign of slowing down, further pushing its political agenda in the middle-east, with an ongoing focus on Lebanon — using offensive cyber operations," the researchers said. "While maintaining its modus operandi and reusing old techniques, the group continues to create new and updated tools to minimize the possible detection of their tools by security vendors."
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Story highlightsMagnitude 7.7 earthquake hits off southern Chilean coastTsunami alert for parts of Pacific Ocean close to quake has been lifted (CNN)A magnitude 7.7 earthquake occurred off the coast of southern Chile Sunday, 40 km (about 25 miles) southwest of Puerto Quellon, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center had issued a tsunami threat message for parts of the Pacific Ocean close to the earthquake; by 10:30 a.m. ET the center said the threat had passed.A "state of precaution" that had been issued for the region of Los Lagos has been lifted, according to the Chilean Navy Hydrographic and Oceanographic Service.And Chile's Ministry of the Interior and Public Security canceled the tsunami evacuation for the beach areas near the quake zone.Shortly after the quake hit, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet posted a tweet expressing support to the people of her country.Read More"Much strength and mood to the compatriots affected by the earthquake in Chile and other areas of the south! Emergency protocols are already operating," Bachelet tweeted.¡Mucha fuerza y ánimo a los compatriotas afectados por el sismo en Chiloé y otras zonas del sur! Protocolos de emergencia ya están operando.— Michelle Bachelet (@mbachelet) December 25, 2016
CNN MapChile sits on an arc of volcanoes and fault lines circling the Pacific Ocean known as the "Ring of Fire."The area experiences frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.Since 1973, Chile has had more than a dozen quakes of magnitude 7.0 and above.In February 2010, an 8.8 magnitude earthquake killed more than 700 people and affected more than 2 million others, according to Chilean officials.That quake struck off the Pacific coast about 60 miles northwest of Chillan, Chile, at a depth of nearly 22 miles, the USGS said. The city of Concepcion, Chile, and the Maule and Bio Bio regions were devastated, with buildings in ruins and roads left unpassable. In the quake's immediate aftermath, more than 1.5 million people were without power in and around Santiago.
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Berlin (CNN)New Year's Eve celebrations in Berlin will feature a special safe area for women who feel harassed.The Red Cross has set up a tent where women can get help if they feel unsafe on the Eberstrasse, just south of the Brandenberg Gate, the focal point of New Year's festivities in the German capital. Reports of New Year's Eve sex assaults in Cologne fuel German migrant debateThe Red Cross said the "resting tent" would be beside another tent offering first aid treatment.Spokesman Ronald Riege said both tents were available to anyone -- not just women -- but that there would be a small sign saying "Women's Safety Area" at their entrance.The tents would be staffed by trained paramedics, he told CNN.Read MoreRiege said the Red Cross had a total of six first aid tents around the fan mile but that the tents south of the Brandenburg gate was the only location designated as ''women's safety area.''A total of 140 Red Cross personnel were being deployed for the event, including paramedics and ambulance staff, he said.A police spokeswoman said no officers will be stationed at the Red Cross' "women's safety area" unless called on but that they would be guarding the entire event.The chairman of the German Police Union told the Neue Osnabruecker Zeitung newspaper that the women's safety area sent a "disastrous message" that suggested there were "secure and insecure zones.""It would be the end of equality, freedom of movement and self-determination," the newspaper quoted him as saying.Extra securityNew Year's Eve celebrations in the German city of Cologne in 2015 were marred by a spate of mob sex assaults that were blamed on migrants and fueled a political firestorm over immigration in Germany. Extra security measures were put in place for Berlin's 2016 celebrations and this year an extra 1,600 police are to be deployed in the city.Concrete barricades and fences will also be erected around the ''Fan Mile'' west of Brandenburg Gate, where hundreds of thousands of revelers are expected. No large bags or cases will be allowed inside.Chris Burns reported from Berlin and Susannah Cullinane wrote from Auckland.
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(CNN)Tom Brady's 'final' career touchdown ball has sold for $518,000 at auction, according to the auction site Lelands.Two days after the auction closed, however, the 44-year-old quarterback announced that he would be returning for his 23rd season in the NFL with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, following a six-week retirement. The $518,000 ball featured during the Buccaneers' home playoff loss to the Los Angeles Rams on January 23. Brady threw the ball 55 yards to wide receiver Mike Evans who scored a touchdown to cut the Rams' lead to seven, 27-20, with 3:20 left to play in the game. Despite their comeback from 27-3 down, the Bucs eventually lost 30-27.Bucs wide receiver Mike Evans catches what was thought to have been Tom Brady's last NFL touchdown throw ever -- until Brady came out of retirement on March 13.Immediately after the game, Brady was still uncertain about his future playing career. When he announced his retirement a week later, it gave the ball extra significance as it became what was then considered his final career touchdown ball. Read MoreRather than being preserved in a museum, the ball had reached the public domain because Evans had tossed it into the stands in celebration where it was caught by a lucky spectator. Lelands used marks and numbers on the ball to photo match it and verify its authenticity. Last year, Lelands also auctioned Brady's first career touchdown ball for $428,841 which was similarly tossed into the stands by the receiver who caught it, Terry Glenn. In between engineering these two touchdowns, Brady won seven Super Bowls -- an all-time record -- and became the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards (84,520), touchdown passes (624), completions (7,263), regular season wins (243), playoff wins (35) and Super Bowl MVPs (five).
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Story highlightsLuke Donald targets the world No. 1 spot after being honored by the European TourEnglishman awarded honorary life membership after record breaking yearDonald topped the money lists on both the European and PGA Tours in 2011The 34-year-old can retain his top ranking with victory at Wentworth this weekFresh from being awarded honorary life membership of the European Tour after his record-breaking 2011, Luke Donald is aiming to cap a landmark week by reclaiming the world No.1 spot.The Englishman was handed the accolade after becoming the first player to top both the European Tour and PGA Tours money lists last year.Donald spent a large part of last season at the top of the rankings, hitting the front after defeating compatriot Lee Westwood in a playoff at the BMW PGA Championship.And as he prepares to launch the defense of his crown at English course Wentworth this week, Donald has underlined his desire to usurp Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy at the top of the rankings.Tiger's niece Cheyenne Woods turns professional"I'm excited to be here, and glad to have a chance to go back to number one," he was quoted as saying on the European Tour's official website."It's always a great week, and especially when you have a weather forecast like this. I'm excited to be back here. JUST WATCHEDMonty: Difficult time for Tiger ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHMonty: Difficult time for Tiger 03:44JUST WATCHED'Lefty' to enter golf's Hall of Fame ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCH'Lefty' to enter golf's Hall of Fame 04:06"I've performed well around this golf course and I think any time you're coming back to a place with such good memories, you feel good about it."Donald has performed well at Wentworth after changes were made to the course two years ago and he says last year's triumph over Westwood provided one of the highlights of his career so far.He added: "It was a huge win for me, in terms of cementing the win that I had a few months earlier in the Accenture Match Play."To come here and win a stroke play event against a very strong field in the The European Tour's Flagship Event was special."I grew up just down the road, I had watched this tournament many times as a kid. Not just having the win on the line but also the title being Number One golfer in the world was very special. The year kept improving as it went along, and this was a big part of it."Donald's stellar 2011 convinced the European Tour to hand him honorary life membership and he becomes the 41st player to achieve the feat.Newly-wed Dufner dreams of Ryder CupLast year 2011 U.S. Open champion Rory McIlroy, 2011 British Open winner Darren Clarke, South Africa's Charl Schwartzel, who won the 2011 Masters, and Lee Westwood were all awarded the prize.Donald said: "It is very inspiring what the European Tour has done in the last few years, and it's nice to be mentioned in the same breath as some of the greats that have played this Tour, and this is very special. "This means a lot, and I really thank you for it."The European Tour's chief executive George O'Grady said Donald's achievements in 2011, where he won record earnings of €5,323,400 ($6,701,800) were quite extraordinary. He said: "To reach the number one position in the world last May in such dramatic circumstances at Wentworth was one thing, but to follow that up with another superb victory in the Scottish Open on his way to winning The Race to Dubai and the US PGA Tour Money List was deeply impressive."Luke's record in 2011 speaks volumes for his consistent high standard of play during the whole year and it is a great privilege to honour him in this very special way with this Honorary Life Membership, the highest award we as a Tour can bestow."
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Sign up for CNN's Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more. (CNN)For the first time, chimpanzees were spotted capturing insects and applying them to their own wounds, as well as the wounds of others, possibly as a form of medication. This behavior of one animal applying medication to the wounds of another has never been observed before, and it may be a sign of helpful tendencies in chimpanzees similar to empathy in humans, according to a new study. Researchers witnessed multiple instances of this behavior within a community of about 45 chimpanzees at the Loango National Park in Gabon, as part of the Ozouga Chimpanzee Project.The goal of the project, led by primatologist Tobias Deschner and cognitive biologist Simone Pika, is to study the relationships and interactions between the chimps as well as how they hunt, use tools, communicate and flex their cognitive skills. The findings published Monday in the journal Current Biology.Bears, elephants and even bees have been known to self-medicate against parasites and illness.Mysterious chimpanzee behavior may be evidence of 'sacred' ritualsRead More"Self-medication — where individuals use plant parts or non-nutritional substances to combat pathogens or parasites — has been observed across multiple animal species including insects, reptiles, birds and mammals," said Pika, study author and professor of comparative biocognition, at the University of Osnabrück's Institute of Cognitive Science in Germany, in a statement. "Our two closest living relatives, chimpanzees and bonobos, for instance, swallow leaves of plants with anthelmintic (antiparasitic) properties and chew bitter leaves that have chemical properties to kill intestinal parasites."But this is the first recorded instance of animals applying other animal matter -- the insects -- to open wounds. "Chimpanzees eat insects but we did not know that they catch and use them to treat their wounds," Pika said. "Hence, they not only have an understanding of their food species (plants, insects, monkeys, birds, reptiles) but probably also about characteristics of other animal species that help to act against injuries."Care in a chimpanzee communityThe discovery was initially made when project volunteer Alessandra Mascaro watched an interaction between a mother chimp, Suzee, and her son Sia, in 2019. Sia had an injured foot, and Suzee appeared to be tending to it."I noticed that she appeared to have something between her lips that she then applied to the wound on Sia's foot," Mascaro said in a statement. "Later that evening, I re-watched my videos and saw that Suzee had first reached out to catch something which she put between her lips and then directly onto the open wound on Sia's foot."About a week later, it happened again when doctoral student Lara Southern watched adult male chimp Freddy doing something similar. The team surmised that the chimps were capturing tiny flying insects from the air.Leprosy seen in wild chimpanzees for the first timeOver the next year, the researchers closely watched and filmed all of the chimps that showed signs of injury and recorded 22 chimps applying insects to their own wounds. Then, Southern witnessed chimps tending to each other."An adult male, Littlegrey, had a deep open wound on his shin, and Carol, an adult female, who had been grooming him, suddenly reached out to catch an insect," Southern said in a statement. "What struck me most was that she handed it to Littlegrey, he applied it to his wound and subsequently Carol and two other adult chimpanzees also touched the wound and moved the insect on it. The three unrelated chimpanzees seemed to perform these behaviours solely for the benefit of their group member."This happened again when another adult male also tended to Littlegrey's thumb about four months later.The team cataloged 76 cases of chimps using insects on their wounds and the wounds of others over 15 months, from November 2019 to February 2021.Helping one anotherTending to others is prosocial, or positive behavior that is in the interest of helping others -- something that isn't often observed in animals."This is, for me, especially breathtaking because so many people doubt prosocial abilities in other animals," Pika said. "Suddenly we have a species where we really see individuals caring for others.""Prosocial behaviours have long posed a problem for evolutionary theory, because it was not immediately clear why organisms might help others in the face of selection operating in the interest of self," the authors wrote in the study.It's difficult to say if what the chimps are doing is motivated by empathy, but the researchers were surprised to see that the chimps recognized that how they treat their own wounds can be applied to others and helped one another even if they weren't related.Chimps from two Czech zoos are Zooming each other every day"We do not know whether the observed behavior involves empathy," Pika said. "We know that it may qualify as prosocial behaviour, meaning it may increase the welfare of another animal -- feeling better via the social attention and caring, or via substances in the saliva-insect mix that may be soothing or anti-inflammatory. There are examples of chimpanzees adopting and rescuing other chimpanzees, which may involve empathy."Chimpanzees have long shown that they benefit from cooperation when taking on activities like territorial patrols or hunting, but researchers remain divided on if chimpanzees can be considered proscial or empathetic."Our observations may add another facet to the ongoing debate on prosocial behaviors and inspire future studies investigating the behaviours surrounding wound care and the potential medicative function of insect-application," the authors wrote in the study.Looking aheadIt's possible that the insects the chimps are using have antiseptic or anti-inflammatory properties to soothe the pain of their injuries and promote healing. There is a long history of humans using insects for these same purposes dating back to 1,400 BC, the researchers said. They also can't rule out that this is potentially more of a placebo effect.The UN wants to protect these chimps' unique culturePrevious research has shown that some behaviors in chimpanzees, like using tools, is a learned behavior. Perhaps medicating and helping others is one of those practices passed among the group, too.Next, the Ozouga researchers wants to identify the insects the chimps are using and closely follow which of the animals seem motivated to help others in their community. They also want to study the insects to see if they have any pharmaceutical properties and determine if the use of the insects helped heal the wounds."It is just fascinating to see that after decades of research on wild chimpanzees they still surprise us with unexpected new behaviours," Deschner said in a statement. "Our study shows that there is still a lot to explore and discover about our closest living relatives, and we therefore need to still put much more effort into protecting them in their natural habitat."
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Kyiv, Ukraine (CNN)Ukrainians will never forget the events of February 24, 2022. But for some, birthdays in years to come will be especially poignant and tinged with memories of a traumatic day.Natalia, a communications manager who lives in the capital, Kyiv, had an unusual wake-up call on her 31st birthday on Thursday.Instead of breakfast in bed, her husband Sasha jolted her awake at 5 a.m. Their city was being bombed, he told her. "I picked up my phone and immediately opened Facebook," said Natalia.As she was absorbing the enormity of events, a surreal moment: A courier arrived at her apartment block with a bunch of enormous green balloons. "Natalia, celebrate life!" they screamed.Lamia celebrated her fifth birthday by dressing as cartoon character Ladybug."I wanted to cry and call my mom," she said.Read MoreNatalia grabbed a suitcase and in a daze of confusion simply dropped her Panama hat into the bottom. But she and Sasha decided not to leave the city."I finally burst into tears when my grandmother called me," she said. "Her name is also Natalia, she is 90 this year. My grandmother congratulated me on my birthday and wished me good health."It wasn't the birthday Natalia expected. It was one she'll never forget.Kyiv residents calm and resolved as Russian forces converge on Ukraine's capital"We went to our parents for a festive dinner, listened to the air raid alert, went down to the basement. There, in the dank dampness, a young mother was feeding a baby, small dogs in overalls were running around, cats were sitting quietly in carriers."Natalia is beginning to wonder whether her birthday is cursed."You see, there is always some kind of nightmare happening on my birthdays. Executions on the Maidan, a pandemic, now there is a war."In 2014, February protests in Maidan Square were targeted by snipers, and more than 100 people were killed."The fact is that I am an irreparable, rabid optimist and this quality has never let me down."Another resident of Kyiv, Natasha, also celebrates her birthday on February 24. Most years."Today is the scariest day of my life," she told CNN. "My son Vadim and me were so far apart! I am at home in Dnipro, and he is in Kyiv -- he has just entered the university."Battle for Ukrainian capital underway as Russian troops seek to encircle KyivShe spent her 45th birthday worrying and waiting. "In Kyiv things exploded, burned, and the sounds of an air raid alert were heard. My son and my niece rushed around Kyiv, tried to leave the city but returned."It seems to me that I died several times, hearing Vadim crying and being scared."It was the next day, and Natasha was -- as it were -- a year older when she was reunited with her son."He had been sobbing from stress. 'Mom, it shouldn't be like this! People should not fight and kill each other. What is all this for?'"Vadim himself has a birthday soon, and Natasha is not looking forward to it."At 18 he will join the territorial defense. And he will definitely study at the military department in order to become an officer. Who knows how long this hell will last?"Soldiers' defiant last words as Russian warship targets Snake IslandAmong the youngest Ukrainians to have a birthday on February 24 is Lamia, who turned five on Thursday.Her mother, Dariia, worries about Lamia's future birthdays. "Today is such a scary and such a joyful day. Exactly five years ago my beautiful girl was born. And yesterday we planned to make a holiday for her, but something terrible happened to our country today," said Dariia. "And although today such a hard time started, she will live in peace and happiness, I promise. At home, we do not show our nerves, we take pictures happily. Today, as she wanted, she is Ladybug, with costume and decorations," she added.Olga, aged 59, settled in Ukraine after emigrating from Russia. "I have never had such a terrible birthday. But there were also some comforts."For example, you are coming home from the subway, and at the monument there is a poster 'F**k shooting'...I can see on the Internet, there's anti-war rally in Moscow on Pushkin Square. And the sign 'No war!' is written with paint on the doors of the State Duma. My people are waking up."
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(CNN)Chelsea has strongly condemned the fans who "shamed the club" after a section of supporters were heard chanting anti-Semitic songs in Hungary during Thursday's Europa League match against MOL Vidi.It comes just days after four Chelsea fans were banned by the club for allegedly racially abusing Raheem Sterling in Saturday's Premier League match against Manchester City. Visit CNN/com/sport for more news, features and videosSome sections of the 1,273 traveling Chelsea supporters who had traveled to Hungary sung songs about London rivals Tottenham Hotspur using the word "Yid," a derogatory term for Jewish people. "Anti-Semitism and any kind of racial or religious hatred is abhorrent to this club and the overwhelming majority of our fans," a Chelsea statement said.Read MoreREAD: People feel free to be 'openly racist,' says former football starREAD: Raheem Sterling accuses British newspapers of helping to 'fuel racism' in footballJUST WATCHEDRise in anti-Semitism casts shadow over EuropeReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHRise in anti-Semitism casts shadow over Europe 06:25"It has no place at Chelsea or in any of our communities. We have stated this loud and clear on many occasions from the owner, the board, coaches and players."UEFA confirmed to CNN Sport that it is awaiting the reports of its officials before deciding on whether to investigate.On Monday, Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck visited Parliament in London to show the club's support for a project honoring non-Jewish people who risked their lives during the Holocaust saving Jews.The project is part of Chelsea's "Say No To Anti-Semitism" campaign, inspired by its Jewish owner Roman Abramovich."Any individuals that can't summon the brainpower to comprehend this simple message and are found to have shamed the club by used using anti-Semitic or racist words or actions will face the strongest possible action from the club," the statement said.Part of Chelsea's "Say No To Anti-Semitism" provides education courses and could require fans found guilty of anti-semitic behavior to visit the site of Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz.Thursday's match finished 2-2 thanks to goals from Olivier Giroud and Willian and sees Chelsea qualify top of Group L.Chelsea and the Metropolitan Police continue to investigate the allegations of racial abuse towards Sterling on Saturday.
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Hackers won't be spared.
Three Chinese hackers have been ordered to pay $8.8 million (£6.8 million) after hacking email servers of two major New York-based law firms to steal corporate merger plans in December 2016 and used them to trade stocks.
The U.S. District Judge Valerie Caproni in Manhattan sued 26-year-old Iat Hong, 30-year-old Bo Zheng, and 50-year-old Hung Chin, over a multi-million dollar insider trading scam.
According to BBC News, the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) alleged the three hackers targeted 7 different law firms, but managed to installed malware on networks belonging to two law firms only, then compromised their IT admin accounts that gave the trio access to every email account at the firms.
Access to the email and web servers allowed them to gain information on planned business mergers and/or acquisitions. The trio then used this information to buy company stock before the deal, and then sell it after the public announcement of the merger or acquisition.
The hackers made more than $4 Million in illegal profits and could face at least decades-long prison sentences if found guilty.
"The trio then bought shares in listed companies ahead of announcements about their merger plans – something that often causes the stock to jump," BBC says.
"The counts against them include conspiracy to commit securities fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit computer intrusion, unlawful access, and intentional damage."
All the three hackers were charged in December 2016 both by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the Department of Justice (DoJ). However, neither of them identified the affected law firms.
Mr. Hong has been ordered to pay $1.8 Million, Mr. Zheng to pay $1.9 Million, and Mr. Chin to pay $4 Million. Any United States assets they own will also be seized.
For now, only Hong, who was arrested in last December in Hong Kong, is in custody and yet to be extradited to the United States, while other two cyber criminals are on the run.
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Story highlightsManchester derby takes oplace on Sunday with City two points ahead of UnitedUnited legend Roy Keane says City team yet to prove they can win big gamesKeane says he would "give up everything" for the chance to play another derbyUnited hold a 67-43 advantage ahead of the 161st meeting between the clubsAlex Ferguson may have dubbed last weekend's clash with Liverpool as "the biggest match in world football," but this weekend's Manchester derby will be a better reflection of the balance of power in England's Premier League.City travel to Old Trafford with a two-point lead over Ferguson's second-placed defending champions United after eight rounds, and victory on Sunday would be a major statement of the title ambitions of Roberto Mancini's expensively-assembled squad."Over the last year or two, City have made a lot of progress getting into the Champions League, and Mancini won the FA Cup, but talk is cheap -- it's all about winning these games. But it's easier said than done," United legend Roy Keane told CNN on Friday. "What City learned from last year was that they drew a lot of games. If you want to win the Premier League you've got to win matches. For City to make real progress, can they go on and beat some of the big boys? "City have had a good start to this season, but they've played nobody yet. It's when they turn up against Chelsea, Liverpool and United on Sunday. Even Arsenal are still a big test for anybody, even though they're having a hard time."United have done that over the years, they've always been capable of winning these big, big matches. United have been down this road many times before, but City haven't. People have been asking if City can go on and win the league ... we'll find out on Sunday."First European wins for Manchester clubsKeane captained United and won seven of the club's record 19 English titles plus the European Champions League during his 12-year stint at Old Trafford. City, by comparison, have been domestic champions only twice -- and not since 1968.United have won 67 derbies to City's 43, with 50 draws.A fiercely combative midfielder, Keane infamously claimed in his autobiography that he tried to hurt City's Alf-Inge Haaland in the 2001 Manchester derby, when he was sent off and fined -- and then further punished after the comments were published.Perhaps surprisingly, the outspoken Irishman stopped short of condemning City's former United striker Carlos Tevez, who is expected to be charged by the club for failing to resume warming up as a substitute during last month's Champions League defeat by Bayern Munich."It's difficult to comment on what's going on, I've learned that from my own experience," Keane said. "If anything I can sympathize with the manager. Players don't even like warming up -- modern players, half of them are clowns. That's why managers are so stressed all the time. "People talk about the pressure of winning football matches and the media -- to me that was a doddle. With certain players who don't want to get warmed up, what's wrong with them? But there's two sides to every argument."Keane moved into management after retiring in 2006, and has had mixed success after guiding Sunderland into the Premier League at the first attempt, being sacked second division Ipswich in January.But his passion for the game, especially one as big as Sunday, is as strong as ever."I'd nearly give my wife and kids away to go back and play one of these games. That's what you miss about the game," the 40-year-old said. "People talk about the contracts and winning trophies, but it's about these games. Sitting in the dressing room, the manager doesn't have to do too much. "He'd be going, 'Right lads...' and you'd be kicking doors down, going 'Let me at them!' It sounds crazy to people on the outside, they'd be saying he needs to relax a bit, but you'd give it all up to go back -- give up all of the success for one more game."However, he won't be in the stands at Old Trafford cheering his old team on."I've kept my distance, I've always done that. People might think it's strange, but when I left I thought I needed to keep my distance and get on with my own life and challenges. But I'll be watching on the television, absolutely."I can never see United losing at home, but City will give them problems."
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The adversary behind Conti ransomware targeted no fewer than 16 healthcare and first responder networks in the U.S. within the past year, totally victimizing over 400 organizations worldwide, 290 of which are situated in the country.
That's according to a new flash alert issued by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on Thursday.
"The FBI identified at least 16 Conti ransomware attacks targeting U.S. healthcare and first responder networks, including law enforcement agencies, emergency medical services, 9-1-1 dispatch centers, and municipalities within the last year," the agency said.
Ransomware attacks have worsened over the years, with recent targets as varied as state and local governments, hospitals, police departments, and critical infrastructure. Conti is one of many ransomware strains that have capitulated on that trend, commencing its operations in July 2020 as a private Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS), in addition to jumping on the double extortion bandwagon by launching a data leak site.
Based on an analysis published by ransomware recovery firm Coveware last month, Conti was the second most prevalent strain deployed, accounting for 10.2% of all the ransomware attacks in the first quarter of 2021.
Infections involving Conti have also breached the networks of Ireland's Health Service Executive (HSE) and Department of Health (DoH), prompting the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) to issue an alert of its own on May 16, stating that "there are serious impacts to health operations and some non-emergency procedures are being postponed as hospitals implement their business continuity plans."
Conti operators are known for infiltrating enterprise networks and spreading laterally using Cobalt Strike beacons prior to exploiting compromised user credentials to deploy and execute the ransomware payloads, with the encrypted files renamed with a ".FEEDC" extension. Weaponized malicious email links, attachments, or stolen Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) credentials are some of the tactics the group used to gain an initial foothold on the target network, the FBI said.
"The actors are observed inside the victim network between four days and three weeks on average before deploying Conti ransomware," the agency noted, adding the ransom amounts are tailored to each victim, with recent demands ratcheting up to as high as $25 million.
The alert also comes amid a proliferation of ransomware incidents in recent weeks, even as extortionists continue to seek exorbitant prices from companies in hopes of landing a huge, quick payday. Insurance major CNA Financial is said to have paid $40 million, while Colonial Pipeline and Brenntag have each shelled out nearly $4.5 million to regain access to their encrypted systems.
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(CNN)English soccer star Rio Ferdinand paid tribute to his "wonderful wife" on Saturday after she passed away following a cancer diagnosis.The former England and Manchester United captain married Rebecca Ellison in 2009, and they have three children."My soul mate slipped away last night," the 36-year-old said in a statement on the website of his current club Queens Park Rangers.Follow @cnnsport
"Rebecca, my wonderful wife, passed away peacefully after a short battle with cancer at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London. She was a fantastic loving mother to our three beautiful children. "She will be missed as a wife, sister, aunt, daughter and granddaughter. She will live on in our memory, as a guide and inspiration."Read More.@LFC's Steven Gerrard hands @Joey7Barton a bouquet of flowers after the sad passing of @rioferdy5's wife, Rebecca pic.twitter.com/8t7kNfmulS— QPR FC (@QPRFC) May 2, 2015
Ferdinand, who asked that his family be "allowed to mourn privately," did not play in QPR's match at Liverpool on Saturday. His teammates wore black arm bands in honor of his wife, while Leroy Fer unveiled a T-shirt saying "Stay strong family Ferdinand" after scoring an equalizing goal.Leroy Fer with a nice message for Rio Ferdinand after his goal for QPR today (via @QPRFC) #LIVvQPR pic.twitter.com/3v9pRNXPjH— Bleacher Report UK (@br_uk) May 2, 2015
"Rio has been a man mountain around the place," said the London team's manager Chris Ramsey after a 2-1 defeat that left QPR second from bottom with three matches to play. "He's had the weight of the world on his shoulders but you wouldn't know that. He's a fantastic professional and conducts himself in a terrific manner. He's trained hard; he's not moped around the place. "Now all our thoughts are with him and his family. We all hope they can find the strength to pull through in this tragic time."Both teams will wear black armbands today, in memory of Rio Ferdinand's late wife Rebecca, who passed away last night pic.twitter.com/sdqEP8kvBY— Manchester United (@ManUtd) May 2, 2015
Fans at Manchester United, where Ferdinand won six Premier League titles and a European crown in a 12-year stay before joining QPR last year, also paid tribute during the later game at home to West Brom.Both sets of players wore black armband while fans chanted the name of United's former defensive stalwart, who played 81 times for England and was selected for three World Cups.Ferdinand has a big social-media fan base, with over 6 million followers on Twitter, 5.6 million likes on his Facebook page and 612,000 on Instagram. He received online condolences from a wide array of fellow footballers such as Gary Lineker, Peter Schmeichel and Michael Essien.Rio Ferdinand's wife dies of cancer http://t.co/PjecN0fVCo— MARCA in English (@MARCAinENGLISH) May 2, 2015
He has struggled at QPR to regain the form that made him Britain's most expensive player when United signed him for £30 million ($45 million) from Leeds in 2002.The former West Ham center-back, who signed a one-year contract with QPR, said in October that he will retire at the end of this season.Meanwhile, fourth-placed United lost 1-0 against West Brom, with Dutch striker Robin van Persie having a second-half penalty saved.United's third successive defeat gave fifth-placed Liverpool hope of qualifying for the European Champions League, but Brendan Rodgers' team is still four points adrift with three games to play.What are your favorite Ferdinand memories? Have your say on the CNNFC Facebook page.
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Hardly a day goes without headlines about any significant data breach. In the past few months, over 1 Billion account credentials from popular social network sites, including LinkedIn, Tumblr, MySpace and VK.com were exposed on the Internet.
Now, the same hacker who was responsible for selling data dumps for LinkedIn, MySpace, Tumblr and VK.com is now selling what is said to be the login information of 200 Million Yahoo! users on the Dark Web.
200 Million Yahoo! Logins for 3 BTC
The hacker, who goes by the pseudonym "Peace" or "peace_of_mind," has uploaded 200 Million Yahoo! credentials up for sale on an underground marketplace called The Real Deal for 3 Bitcoins (US$1,824).
Yahoo! admitted the company was "aware" of the potential leak, but did not confirm the authenticity of the data.
The leaked database includes usernames, MD5-hashed passwords and date of births from 200 Million Yahoo! Users. In some cases, there is also the backup email addresses used for the account, country of origin, as well as the ZIP codes for United States users.
Easily Crackable Passwords
Since the passwords are MD5-encrypted, hackers could easily decrypt them using an MD5 decrypter available online, making Yahoo! users open to hackers.
In a brief description, Peace says the Yahoo! database "most likely" comes from 2012, the same year when Marissa Mayer became Yahoo's CEO.
Just last week, Verizon acquired Yahoo! for $4.8 Billion. So, the hacker decided to monetize the stolen user accounts before the data lose its value.
When reached out, the company said in a statement:
"We are committed to protecting the security of our users' information and we take such claim very seriously. Our security team is working to determine the facts...we always encourage our users to create strong passwords, or give up passwords altogether by using Yahoo Account Key, and use different passwords for different platforms."
Use Password Managers to Secure Your Online Accounts
Although the company has not confirmed the breach, users are still advised to change their passwords (and keep a longer and stronger one using a good password manager) and enable two-factor authentication for online accounts immediately, especially if you are using the same password for multiple websites.
You can also adopt a good password manager that allows you to create complex passwords for different sites as well as remember them for you.
We have listed some best password managers here that could help you understand the importance of password manager and help you choose a suitable one, according to your requirement.
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(CNN)Don't worry, basketball fans -- you're now just 47 days away from your next fix of hoops action.On Thursday, the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) confirmed that the organization had "tentatively approved a start date of December 22" for the upcoming 2020-21 season.The NBPA also confirmed it had agreed to a reduced length 72-game regular season.NBPA STATEMENT ON THE 2020-2021 NBA SEASON START DATE AND SCHEDULE🔗: https://t.co/BmNtnYsm63 pic.twitter.com/AvCaVAOWK7— NBPA (@TheNBPA) November 6, 2020 The announcement has been an open secret for a while having been originally reported by the Athletic on October 22.Nonetheless, the season will arrive earlier than many anticipated.Read MoreThe final game of the 2020 NBA Finals came on October 11 from within a bio-secure bubble at Walt Disney World in Orlando, after a four month mid-season delay due to Covid-19.In September, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver told Bob Costas for CNN that his "best guess" was that the 2020-21 season would begin in January 2021 at the earliest.NBA sources explained to ESPN the reasons behind the December 22 start lie in the perceived financial benefits to the league and its players: "The league believes that a Dec 22 start that includes Christmas Day games on television and allows for a 72-game schedule that finishes before the Summer Olympics in mid-July is worth between $500 million and $1 billion in short- and long-term revenues to the league and players."ComplicationsSpeaking to The Ringer's NBA Show, the Los Angeles Lakers' Danny Green joked in late October that considering that number of veterans on the team including NBA Finals MVP LeBron James, many might not show up for the December 22 start date."I wouldn't expect to see him [James] there, I wouldn't expect to see him for the first month of the season," Green said. "He'll probably be working out with us, he'll probably do some playing. But I just don't expect guys to want to be there or show up willingly."He added: "It might be different in about two weeks."The NBA is looking to get things started up again on December 22, but @DGreen_14 and the other Lakers aren't too keen on it 😅Full #RealOnes with @loganmmurdock and Raja Bell: https://t.co/yYIdpuK49o pic.twitter.com/NHwFIVG00D— #RingerNBA (@ringernba) October 26, 2020 More recently, Green reiterated that he had been joking, and that the Lakers would show up even if he and his teammates wished the season commenced later rather than sooner."To do a long season like we had, regardless of how long we had in between, we still finished at a date and to start up a month-and-a-half later, or two months later, is tough. "But we will show up for work, so don't take it out of context, and I'll speak no more on it, but we hope that we get a little more time to relax and rest and give our bodies a chance to recover before we start back up again."Green makes a fair point though.The difference between the rest teams have had is stark. If the Lakers and their Finals opponents the Miami Heat both play on the opening night of the season, players will have had just 72 days to rest.The eight teams which did not enter the NBA Bubble have not played since either March 10 or 11. If they were to play on the opening night, each team would be playing its first game for nearly 290 days.READ: How LeBron James stacks up against basketball's greatsSteph Curry and his Golden State Warriors teammates will not have played an NBA game in 287 days when they season begins on December 22.Another variable for teams is the NBA Draft. The 2019 NBA Draft took place on June 20 2019 before the season began later that year on October 22. Rookies taken in that draft like Zion Williamson and Ja Morant had, in theory, 121 days to meet with their respective teams, negotiate a contract, integrate into their new teams, train, play in NBA Summer League games before the season began.Previous years followed a similar pattern.In contrast, the 2020 NBA Draft will take place on November 18, theoretically meaning rookies will have just 34 days to do this.It is not yet clear how many, if any, preseason games will take place.
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(CNN)As the old adage goes "if you can't beat them, join them."During 2020, no golfer has arguably been more talked about than Bryson DeChambeau.The addition of 40 pounds of muscle during lockdown catapulted him to the top of the PGA Tour's driving distance rankings. That prodigious driving also helped DeChambeau blitz his way to his maiden major victory at the US Open.But it's the methods he's employed to revamp his game -- which initially others questioned -- which has made some of his contemporaries sit up and take notice and start to experiment with their own training regimes and approach to golf.Former world No. 1 Justin Thomas recently told CNN Sport's Patrick Snell that he is "trying to get stronger" after seeing what DeChambeau has done.Read MoreMeanwhile four-time major winner Rory McIlroy admitted that he's also looking to bring some added speed to his game in an attempt to just keep up with the 2020 US Open winner."For the last couple weeks, I was working on some stuff," said McIlroy ahead of the CJ Cup in October. "I think as a golfer, we're so ingrained to trying to hit the ball where you're looking, and I think that's one of the great things that Bryson's done."Bryson, when he speed trains, he just hits the ball into a net, so he doesn't really know where it's going," added McIlroy."He's just trying to move as fast as he can ... and sort of making the target irrelevant for the time being and then you can sort of try to bring it in from there."From what I've done and what I've been trying -- you know, sort of experimenting with the last couple weeks -- it's the fastest I've ever moved the club, the fastest my body has ever moved."DeChambeau plays his shot from the ninth tee during the final round of the 120th US Open on September 20, 2020.READ: Masters miracle: Written off as 'gone, done,' the 'Golden Bear' had other ideasIn a league of his ownIt's not as if McIlroy is struggling for driving distance. In the early stages of the 2021 PGA Tour season, he had the third highest average of 333.4 yards. He's now in fifth on 325.3, but in 2017 and 2018, McIlroy led the tour in average driving distance.But DeChambeau is still streaks ahead of the Northern Irishman in terms of average driving distance, averaging 344.4 yards this season.During the American's explosive six-shot victory at Winged Foot Golf Course at US Open, McIlroy was tied for eighth spot, a whopping 10 shots behind DeChambeau.And the 31-year-old found it "hard to really wrap" his head around what DeChambeau was doing."He's worked his ass off to do that and it's paying off hugely," McIlroy said.McIlroy plays a shot from the second tee during the third round of The CJ Cup. "I think it's the way the game's going. I got sent a really good article last weekend, it was in the Wall Street Journal, just about every single sport becoming faster, longer, stronger, and I don't think golf's any different. I'm just trying to keep up with the way it's going."As players fine tune their preparations for the Masters, which starts on Thursday, November 12, by playing in other events, DeChambeau has adopted a different approach, according to golf.com.There were four PGA Tour events between the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in October and The Masters. DeChambeau chose to not to take part in any of those events.After competing at the TPC Summerlin tournament, DeChambeau says he was planning to work "out like crazy" in attempt to add even more muscle, before focusing on his driving."I don't know how many drivers I'll hit, but I'll hit as many as I need to," DeChambeau said. "And from a speed-training perspective, I could probably go upwards of over 1,000 to probably 2,000, around 2,000 drives the next four weeks trying to get my speed up."And according to Justin Rose, there's a "trickle down effect" inspired by DeChambeau."I'm hearing kind of rumors out on the range, everyone's trying to crank it up a little bit, get a few more miles an hour," Rose told reporters.Even 2017 PGA Championship winner Thomas, who admits he thought DeChambeau's attempts to overhaul his game weren't "going to work that well," is now full of praise for the 27-year-old.READ: US golfer Kirk Triplett explains why the Black Lives Matter movement is so important to himThomas looks on over the 18th green during the final round of The CJ Cup. "He just won a major at one of the hardest golf courses in the world. And at the end of the day, as far as he hits it, as strong as he's gotten, as much weight as he's put on, he putts the crap out of it to be perfectly honest. I mean, he putts it really well and that's why he won that US Open."It's not because he can hit it 360 yards. It's because he putts it really well and he's a complete golfer. And I think that's starting to show. But it's definitely an advantage how far he hits it. And it's pretty cool."He's getting some of us out here to try to find that extra gear. But at the end the day, he's going to continue to work hard and try to get stronger. "And you just hope that he doesn't hurt himself like a lot of, I guess, other people have trying to get stronger and get fit. But I know that's what I'm doing. I'm trying to get stronger. But most importantly, I'm trying to continue to play injury free."
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Turner Sports is a division of WarnerMedia as is CNN International (CNN)Ask anyone who the original baseball great is and they'll tell you the same name: Babe Ruth.A seven-time World Series champion with the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees, and a 12-time American League (AL) home run leader, Ruth played in Major League Baseball from the age of 19 until he was 40. Ruth was a vaulted star of baseball, the first great sports star in American history. He was baseball's Michael Jordan before the Chicago Bulls great's father was even born. He is undoubtedly a great of the game, yet he played at a time when baseball was segregated. Babe Ruth won the World Series seven times during a 21-year career.During first half of the 20th century, the major leagues of baseball were White only.Read MoreConsequently, many key Black figures in the early days of baseball in the United States are forgotten.One in particular, Andrew "Rube" Foster, is considered by many to be the father of Black baseball, and was instrumental in the foundation of the Negro National League in 1920. Andrew "Rube" Foster is considered by many to be the father of Black baseball.To mark the 100th anniversary of the Negro National League, Turner Sports produced a feature series, entitled "Field of Dreams...Deferred", which explores the history of Black baseball in the US.Senior vice president and creative director at Turner Sports' Drew Watkins told CNN that it was important to tell the story of the Negro Leagues, which has been slowly forgotten over time."The exploits of these players in these teams, however great they were, were not told the same way that the exploits of -- a lot of times -- their white counterparts playing professional baseball were," Watkins says."Everybody knows who Babe Ruth is. Of course, they know who he was. He's the guy, he's the best baseball player ever. This is the same time period that we're talking about. And these players, a lot of them, but if you go by the stories and the accounts, a lot of these players were, you know, as good, if not better."The father of Black American baseballFoster was a terrific player before he became a team owner and league commissioner. Foster had a large build, just like Ruth, but unlike Ruth he was primarily a pitcher rather than batter. In fact, many credit him with inventing the screwball.Legend has it that he was hired by New York Giants manager John McGraw to teach the screwball to the team's star pitcher Christy Mathewson, as the color line prevented Foster from playing for the Giants himself.Foster was made for bigger things than just playing thought. By 1910 he owned and managed his own team, the Leland Giants -- which later became the Chicago American Giants. Rube Foster (top right) played for the Chicago Leland Giants, which was managed and owned by Frank Leland, before taking over management and ownership of the team himself in 1911.A decade on, and after meetings with many different Black team owners, and the Negro National League was formed, with Foster installed as league president.Black Americans had their own league now, but racism was still rife. And as with contemporary life, racism manifested itself in the economic stability and logistics of the league.In the series, 'Field of Dreams...Deferred,' Bob Kendrick, president of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, says "the one fundamental difference" between the Major Leagues and the Negro Leagues was economic."Talent? No different," he says. "But the Major Leagues had more money. And they had their own stadiums."Black owners like Foster had to rent stadiums from White teams, which cut into profits. The series later explores the struggle for integration and it is revealed that part of the MLB's resistance to integration stemmed from White owners not wanting to give up the stadium rent income that was a necessity for the Negro Leagues to pay in order to put on games.MLB team and stadium owners were profiting off segregation in baseball as long as it existed.Subsequently, during the early days of the Negro National League, teams were on the road constantly due to not having a fixed home stadium. Teams also needed their own bus as they could not ride trains during a time of segregation. Many couldn't stay in hotels as they were for White patrons only. So, they slept on the bus floor. Additionally, they were unable to eat at many restaurants too.Under the ownership and management of Rube Foster, the Chicago American Giants won the first three Negro National League championships from 1920-22.It is estimated in the series by Larry Lester, a Negro League baseball author and historian, that White Major League players earned between six and seven times as much as their Black counterparts in the Negro Leagues.Despite the social and economic hardship faced by the leagues, they gain popularity and prosper. The first 'Colored World Series' takes place in 1924.A year earlier in the White-only MLB, Ruth won the fourth of his seven World Series titles and his only AL MVP award. In the same year, he won his only AL batting champion title. History was being made by both Black and White players and organizations in baseball, but society's overt and covert racism means only a few have been historically valued and kept alive by collective memory.Watkins says his team wanted to give a platform to keep these stories alive, and remember the Black baseball greats of the past that aren't held in the same regard as Ruth because of their skin color."It's an important thing to find the people who have the knowledge and to give them a platform to keep these stories alive because all things were certainly not equal," he says. "And the kind of record keeping and accounting and tracking of these stories, it's not just you don't hear about it because they actually weren't that good. No, they were actually pretty good. "You didn't hear about them because of the color of their skin, basically."Black empowermentAt the end of the 1920s, further and irreconcilable hardship came with the Great Depression. As Larry Lester puts it, "When we have an economic setback like the Great Depression, White America catches a cold. Black America catches pneumonia."Many Black Americans were out of work, so teams had no means of income coming through the turnstiles. Foster dies a year later of a heart attack, and in 1931, the Negro National League folds."The death of 'Rube' Foster devastated the Negro National League," Kendrick says. "But then you couple that with the Great Depression and it had virtually no shot."The league was later revived and Foster's impact had taken hold.Earlier this year, MLB teams wore Negro National League throwback jerseys with a badge commemorating the centennary of the league.While the story of the Negro Leagues of baseball may have been underrepresented in baseball history books, Foster's significance to Black Americans and the Black community in sport is not and should not be downplayed.Since 1971, players of the Negro Leagues have been considered for the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Some 35 "Negro Leaguers", including Foster, are among the 333 baseball figures currently enshrined in the Hall of Fame alongside White greats like Ruth.It is not just this accolade where the significance of figures from the Negro Leagues is found though.For Kendrick, Foster's story, and the story of the league, is one of economic empowerment and unprecedented leadership within the Black community.When the Negro Leagues folded following integration, the Black community lost sports team owners, executives and coaches -- and with that, the loss of Black role models in positions of power in sport that were not just players.In Major League Baseball now, there is only one Black owner: Derek Jeter, CEO of the Miami Marlins, who owns a 4% stake in the team -- but the majority owner Bruce Sherman is White.Derek Jeter, who owns a 4% stake in the Miami Marlins, is the only Black owner of an MLB team.It isn't just ownership where Black representation is noticeably low in American sport. Compared with the NFL and the NBA, the percentage of Black Americans playing in Major League Baseball (MLB) is far lower.In the NFL, nearly 60% of players are Black, while in the NBA as many as 81% of the players are as well. In the MLB, that figure is 7.8%.And in terms of fan interest, a 2019 study showed 5% of African Americans call baseball their favorite sport, as opposed to 37% who prefer football and 29% who prefer basketball. Perhaps that figure would be higher with more Black Americans in positions of power.By remembering the Negro Leagues and people like Foster, America remembers a story of Black empowerment.Andrea Williams, author of 'Baseball's Leading Lady: Effa Manley and the Rise and Fall of the Negro Leagues', says as the series closes, "If we were able to accomplish what we were able to accomplish in 1920 with far less resources, what are we capable of now? I think the legacy, honestly, is that we are more powerful than we know."
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London (CNN)French President Emmanuel Macron traveled to London on Thursday to mark the anniversary of a historic World War Two speech with Prime Minister Boris Johnson, in the first major face-to-face meeting between two European leaders since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Due to the social distancing measures in place, Macron, a man known for his firm grip and tactile nature, was unable to shake hands with any of those he met, including the Prime Minister, Prince Charles, or his wife Camilla. This led to scenes of dignitaries bowing at one another from a distance, unusual for such an event as the visit of a foreign leader. Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall greet Emmanuel Macron at Clarence House.Their official reason for meeting was to mark the 80th anniversary of Charles de Gaulle's broadcast from London to an occupied France during the Second World War. The BBC radio address, known as L'Appel, was a key moment in the French resistance to Nazi occupation."The British monarchy became the refuge of the French Republic" when de Gaulle was exiled from France, and he was treated as "the legitimate Minister of France, the real ambassador of French values" by Winston Churchill, Macron said Thursday. Nodding to the impact of de Gaulle's address, Macron said the UK had given France "its first weapon: a BBC microphone."Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall, and Macron at a statue for de Gaulle in London.Read MoreMacron marked the anniversary by awarding the Legion d'Honneur, France's highest order of merit, to the city of London for providing refuge to de Gaulle during the war. Prince Charles accepted the honor in the name of his mother, Queen Elizabeth, and on behalf of London.The French President was not subjected to the UK's 14-day quarantine for people traveling into the country, due to the rules allowing for diplomatic exemption. During a meeting in the Cabinet Room at 10 Downing Street, the two leaders discussed the pandemic and a number of other ongoing situations, a spokeperson for Johnson said."On UK-EU negotiations, the Prime Minister welcomed the agreement to intensify talks in July and underlined that the UK does not believe it makes sense for there to be prolonged negotiations into the autumn," the spokeperson said. On Libya, the two leaders "agreed on the need for a UN-led political process which brings together all parties to end the conflict."Johnson and Macron also "agreed to continue to work closely on other international issues, including the proposed Chinese national security law in Hong Kong which would be a breach of the Joint Declaration, and to bring about a two state solution in the Middle East Peace Process," the spokesperson added. French and British jets fly over Paris on Thursday. Following their meeting, Macron and Johnson viewed artifacts from de Gaulle's time in London, including gifts that he gave to Winston Churchill and Lady Churchill to thank them for their support in 1940. The leaders then watched a flyover of French and British planes, hours after British jets flew over Paris to mark the anniversary.
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About two weeks back, over 40,000 organizations running MongoDB were found unprotected and vulnerable to hackers. Now, once again the users of MongoDB database are at risk because of a critical zero-day vulnerability making rounds in underground market.
MongoDB, one of the leading NoSQL databases, is an open-source database used by companies of all sizes, across all industries for a wide variety of applications. By leveraging in-memory computing, MongoDB provides high performance for both reads and writes.
'PhPMoAdmin' ZERO-DAY VULNERABILITY
Hacker known by the online moniker, "sp1nlock" has found a zero-day vulnerability in 'phpMoAdmin', a free, open-source, written in PHP, AJAX-based MongoDB GUI (graphical user interface) administration tool that allows you to easily manage noSQL database MongoDB.
According to multiple posts available on the exploit selling underground forums, the phpMoAdmin is vulnerable to a Zero-Day Remote Code Execution flaw that allows an unauthorized remote user to hijack the websites running phpMoAdmin tool.
0-DAY EXPLOIT AVAILABLE AND IT WORKS
At the time of writing, we have no idea that phpMoAdmin developers are aware of the this zero-day vulnerability or not, but this exploit is already for sale on underground exploits forums and has already been verified by the market administrators that — It Works!
It might be possible that number of buyers and hackers already have access to the phpMoAdmin zero-day exploit and, unfortunately, there is no patch yet available for thousands of vulnerable websites.
HOW TO PROTECT MONGO DATABASE ?
In order to protect yourself, users of MongoDB database are recommended to avoid using phpMoAdmin until the developer team releases a patch for the zero-day remote code execution vulnerability.
As an alternate to the phpMoAdmin, you can make use of other free MongoDB GUI Tools available, as follows:
RockMongo – A Powerful MongoDB GUI Tool
MongoVUE – A Desktop based MongoDB GUI Tool
Mongo-Express – A well featured MongoDB GUI Tool
UMongo – A Decent MongoDB GUI Tool
Genghis – A lightweight MongoDB GUI Tool
However, if you don't want to replace your phpMoAdmin file, then the simplest approach would be to restrict unauthorized access using htaccess password i.e. creating '.htpasswd' authentication for folder containing "moadmin.php" file.
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A new and terribly awful breed of Point-of-Sale (POS) malware has been spotted in the wild by the security researchers at Cisco's Talos Security Intelligence & Research Group that the team says is more sophisticated and nasty than previously seen Point of Sale malware.
The Point-of-Sale malware, dubbed "PoSeidon", is designed in a way that it has the capabilities of both the infamous Zeus banking Trojan and BlackPOS malware which robbed Millions from US giant retailers, Target in 2013 and Home Depot in 2014.
PoSeidon malware scrapes memory from Point of Sale terminals to search for card number sequences of principal card issuers like Visa, MasterCard, AMEX and Discover, and goes on using the Luhn algorithm to verify that credit or debit card numbers are valid.
The malware then siphon the captured credit card data off to Russian (.ru) domains for harvesting and likely resale, the researchers say.
"PoSeidon is another in the growing number of malware targeting POS systems that demonstrate the sophisticated techniques and approaches of malware authors," researchers of Cisco's Security Solutions team wrote in a blog post.
"Attackers will continue to target POS systems and employ various obfuscation techniques in an attempt to avoid detection. As long as POS attacks continue to provide returns, attackers will continue to invest in innovation and development of new malware families."
The components of PoSeidon are illustrated in the diagram above.
Poseidon Point of Sale malware comprises of a Loader binary that maintains persistence on the target machine in an attempt to survive reboots and user logouts. The Loader then receives other components from the command and control servers.
A subsequently downloaded binary FindStr installs a Keylogger component which scans the memory of the PoS device for credit card number sequences.
The identified numbers are verified using the Luhn algorithm and then encrypted and sent to one of the given exfiltration servers, majority of which belongs to Russian domains:
linturefa.com
xablopefgr.com
tabidzuwek.com
lacdileftre.ru
tabidzuwek.com
xablopefgr.com
lacdileftre.ru
weksrubaz.ru
linturefa.ru
mifastubiv.ru
xablopefgr.ru
tabidzuwek.ru
In past few years, a number of Point of Sale malware has been spotted in the United States, collecting users' credit card magnetic stripe data, and selling them in underground black markets.
Network administrators should remain vigilant and must adhere to industry best practices so that they can protect themselves against advancing Point of Sale malware threats, the researchers say.
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London (CNN)Manchester United have confirmed the departure of manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, one day after the club suffered a humiliating 4-1 Premier League defeat at Watford.Solskjaer has overseen a disappointing start to the season, with the club sitting in seventh place in the Premier League. They have lost four of their past five league matches, including a 5-0 home thumping at the hands of rivals Liverpool.The former United striker took over as an interim boss in 2018 and was subsequently given a permanent contract, but his position has been under scrutiny for several weeks."Ole will always be a legend at Manchester United and it is with regret that we have reached this difficult decision," the club said in a statement. "While the past few weeks have been disappointing, they should not obscure all the work he has done over the past three years to rebuild the foundations for long-term success."Read MoreAssistant coach Michael Carrick will take charge of the team for their upcoming fixtures, while the club searches for a permanent replacement for Solskjaer.United board mull successorsUnited's recent downturn in form has seen the team lose seven of their last 13 matches, with Saturday's chastening defeat to Watford the final straw for the club board.Solskjaer was initially drafted in from Norwegian side Molde in 2018 to right the ship after Jose Mourinho's tumultuous tenure at the helm of the side. He was awarded a permanent contract after an impressive run of results as the team's interim manager. Despite that early promise, however, Solskjaer was never able to lead the team to further success and he leaves having failed to win a trophy in his three years at the club.The pressure had been mounting on the Norwegian coach for several weeks, but the team was able to pull off big results when Solskjaer's job was seemingly on the line.The board even stuck by the 48-year-old after last month's embarrassing 5-0 defeat at home to bitter rivals Liverpool, with the team following up that result with a big 3-0 win at Tottenham.But that was as good as it would get for Solskjaer as United limped to a draw at Atalanta in the Champions League, before losing on home soil to Manchester City."Ole leaves with our sincerest thanks for his tireless efforts as Manager and our very best wishes for the future," the club said. "His place in the club's history will always be secure, not just for his story as a player, but as a great man and a Manager who gave us many great moments. "He will forever be welcome back at Old Trafford as part of the Manchester United family."The club will now look for Solskjaer's successor, with former Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane and current Leicester City coach Brendan Rogers reportedly in the frame for the job.
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Story highlights Pakistan military increases border security with Afghanistan for electionPhotographer Anja Niedringhaus died on the eve of Afghanistan's electionKathy Gannon, a longtime reporter in the region, was injuredThe attack on the two women journalists comes on the eve of Afghanistan's electionsAn Associated Press photographer was shot to death on the eve of Afghanistan's elections in an attack that wounded the news agency's long-time reporter in the region.Anja Niedringhaus, 48, a Pulitzer Prize-winning German photographer, died in the shooting on Friday in Afghanistan's eastern Khost province, the AP said. The attack injured Kathy Gannon, a Canadian reporter based in Islamabad, who was in stable condition and getting medical treatment, according to the AP. Gannon, 60, has reported on Pakistan and Afghanistan since the 1980s."Anja and Kathy together have spent years in Afghanistan covering the conflict and the people there," said AP executive editor Kathleen Carroll, speaking in New York. "Anja was a vibrant, dynamic journalist well-loved for her insightful photographs, her warm heart and joy for life. We are heartbroken at her loss." In a letter to AP staff Friday morning, chief executive Gary Pruitt also praised the courage and skill of Niedringhaus, describing her as "spirited, intrepid and fearless, with a raucous laugh that we will always remember."JUST WATCHED2 AP journalists shot in AfghanistanReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCH2 AP journalists shot in Afghanistan 00:25White House commentAt the White House, spokesman Josh Earnest said Friday that the thoughts and prayers of President Barack Obama and the first lady went out to the family of Niedringhaus.He praised the efforts of journalists from Afghanistan and around the world who risked their own safety to cover Saturday's election, the third since the fall of the Taliban in Afghanistan in 2001.The two women were traveling in their own vehicle in a convoy of election workers delivering ballots in Khost province, protected by the Afghan National Army and Afghan police, according to the AP. A unit commander walked up to their car at one point, yelled "Allahu akbar" -- "God is great" -- and opened fire on them in the back seat, the AP said. The attacker then surrendered to the other police present.The reason for the attack was unclear, but police have arrested the suspected shooter and the case was under investigation, said Baryalay Rawan, a spokesman for the Khost provincial governor.Hours later, a bomb exploded in a polling center in the province's Tanai district, about 15 kilometers (9 miles) from where the attack on the journalists occurred, Rawan said.Two people died in the bombing, including Tanai district's deputy police chief, and three were injured, he said.The attacks came amid heightened security for the nation's presidential and provincial elections on Saturday.Afghanistan's election marks the first democratic handover of power in the fragile country, with current President Hamid Karzai -- who is term-limited by the constitution -- handing over the reins.Karzai was chosen by Afghan leaders to head the country after the fall of the Taliban, and won two subsequent presidential elections in 2004 and 2009.Taliban disruptionThe Taliban have vowed to disrupt the elections and punish anyone involved in them. A series of attacks in the capital, Kabul, and elsewhere has marred the run-up to voting.Pakistan's military said Friday that all border crossing points with Afghanistan were closed for Saturday's election. Taliban militants in the mountainous border region have launched attacks in Afghanistan.On Wednesday, a suicide bomber blew himself up at the entrance gate to the Interior Ministry in Kabul, killing six Afghan police officers, Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqqi said. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack.A day earlier, a provincial council candidate and nine of his supporters were killed by the Taliban in northern Sar-e-Pul province, said the province's deputy police chief, Sakhidad Haidari.Last month, Sardar Ahmad, one of Afghanistan's most prominent journalists and a senior reporter for Agence France-Presse, was among nine people killed in an attack on the Serena Hotel in central Kabul.Less than two weeks earlier, Swedish Radio correspondent Nils Horner was shot dead in broad daylight on a Kabul street.In his letter to AP staff, Pruitt said: "As conflict spreads throughout regions of the world, journalism has become more dangerous. Where once reporters and photographers were seen as the impartial eyes and ears of crucial information, today they are often targets."The Committee to Protect Journalists highlighted the risks faced by journalists in Afghanistan, particularly women, in a piece published in February. Some fear those risks may increase with the planned withdrawal of NATO combat forces, including U.S. troops, by the end of the year.Changed mission?The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force had just over 51,000 troops, from 48 different countries, in Afghanistan as of Tuesday. The majority -- about 33,500 -- are from the United States.Karzai has refused to sign an agreement to keep foreign security troops in the country after 2014.But Gen. Philip Breedlove, NATO's supreme allied commander Europe, told CNN's Christiane Amanpour this week that he anticipates international forces will remain in Afghanistan after the currently scheduled withdrawal. "I think you will see a very large ISAF combat mission changed to a smaller but continued resolute support, train, advise and assist mission at the end of the year," he said. "NATO's mission doesn't end (after 2014); NATO's combat mission ends, but our train, advise, assist mission begins, and this is very important to remember."The three leading presidential candidates -- Abdullah Abdullah, Zalmai Rassoul and Ashraf Ghani -- have told CNN that they are in favor of signing a security agreement.Abdullah, who was a vocal critic of the Taliban during their years in power, was a previous Karzai ally and served in his government as foreign minister.ContendersIn later years, he has been a thorn in the side of the outgoing President. He is seen as a relatively liberal candidate and advocate of women's engagement in public life.Rassoul is seen as the establishment candidate. A Karzai ally, he received the backing of the current President's brother, Qayum, who withdrew his candidacy and endorsed the former foreign minister. Rassoul has a reputation for honesty, despite his years in an administration plagued with accusations of graft.The third key contender, Ghani, is a former U.S. citizen and academic who gave up his passport to run for the Afghan presidency in 2009. He is seen as a moderate, with experience in development, but his past links to the United States may lessen his chances if voters consider him an outsider. NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, speaking Wednesday in Belgium, said the latest briefings from NATO commanders show that despite the Taliban's threats, overall violence across Afghanistan "is lower now than at any time during the last two years."Rasmussen praised the work of Afghan security forces, which have taken over many responsibilities from ISAF, saying they had "demonstrated commitment, courage and professionalism" during preparations for the elections.
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Story highlightsNovak Djokovic knocks defending champion Andy Murray out of the Miami MastersThe world No. 2 edges past long-time rival 7-5 6-3 in controversial matchMurray aggrieved at umpire's call when Djokovic appeared to reach over netDominika Cibulkova books semifinal berth after beating Agnieszka RadwanskaIt might not make up for losing the Wimbledon final but in his first meeting with Andy Murray since last July, Novak Djokovic got a slice of revenge.The Serbian world No. 2 elbowed defending champion Murray out of the Miami Masters, but not without a spot of controversy.Djokovic sealed a 7-5 6-3 victory with some trademark tennis but was given a helping hand by a debatable call towards the end of the first set.Although the umpire allowed Djokovic's winner to stand, replays appeared to show the 26-year-old had reached over the net to play what proved a decisive volley.Read more: Venus Williams has 'nothing to lose'Murray questioned the call, speaking to both his opponent and the official before play continued, and Djokovic wrapped up the opening set 7-5. The Briton defeated Djokovic in straight sets on his way to a second grand slam title at Wimbledon in 2013 and the Serbian repeated the feat in front of a sunkissed Miami crowd.JUST WATCHEDVenus Williams fights incurable diseaseReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHVenus Williams fights incurable disease 05:47JUST WATCHEDBeach workout lifts your gameReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHBeach workout lifts your game 04:26JUST WATCHEDA game-changer for tennis?ReplayMore Videos ...MUST WATCHA game-changer for tennis? 02:43Although Murray earned a break to lead 3-2 in the second, Djokovic roared back to win the next four games and wrap up the match in 90 minutes.Murray, who recently parted company with coach Ivan Lendl, showed signs of getting back to his best after a spell on the sidelines with a back injury.As for Djokovic, he will face Japan's Kei Nishikori in the semifinals as he bids to win his second title of 2014, hot on the heels of his triumph at Indian Wells.Nishikori upset Indian Wells finalist Roger Federer, coming from behind to triumph 3-6 7-5 6-4 against the two-time Miami champion.In the women's draw, Dominika Cibulkova booked a likely place in the top-10 in the world rankings with a hard-fought 3-6 7-6 6-3 victory over Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska.Cibulkova, from Slovakia, battled for two-and-a-half hours before finally sealing a semifinals clash with China's world No. 2 Li Na -- who beat former top-ranked Dane Caroline Wozniacki 7-5 7-5.It will be a replay of January's Australian Open final, which Li won."This win really means a lot to me," Cibulkova said during an on-court interview after a win which should see her make a first ever appearance in the world's top 10 on Monday."It's always tough to play Aga, but I knew I just had to stay aggressive. If you make some mistakes with Aga you still have to stay aggressive. "That's the way I play, and it's the only way to beat her. I just had to keep going.""I knew before the match that this was the match I needed to win to become top 10," she added. "So it was some more pressure, but I'm obviously very happy with the way I handled it today."Read: Murray cuts ties with coach LendlRead more: Del Potro out for rest of 2014?
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(CNN)A Chinese warship allegedly used a laser to "illuminate" an Australian Air Force jet in what Canberra called a "serious safety incident" in a statement released on Saturday."Acts like this have the potential to endanger lives," the statement from the Australian Defence Force said, adding it strongly condemns the "unprofessional and unsafe military conduct."Pilots targeted by laser attacks in the past have reported disorienting flashes, pain, spasms and spots in their vision and even temporary blindness. "During critical phases of flight when the pilot does not have adequate time to recover, the consequences of laser exposure could be tragic," a US Federal Aviation Administration document says.Two Chinese People's Liberation Army warships are seen in an image released by the Australian military after it said one of the ships endangered an Australian plane with a laser.The incident occurred on Thursday, the statement said, when an Australian P-8A aircraft, a reconnaissance and anti-submarine warfare plane, was flying over the Arafura Sea, the body of water between Australia's Northern Territory and the island of New Guinea to the north.Read MoreThe Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) ship that pointed the laser at the Australian jet was one of two PLAN warships sailing east across the Arafura Sea at the time, the Australian military said.It released photos of two Chinese ships with the statement, which, according to their hull numbers, are the guided-missile destroyer Hefei and the amphibious transport dock Jinggang Shan.Australia did not say which of the two ships pointed the laser at the Australian aircraft.After the incident, the Chinese ships passed through the Torres Strait into the Coral Sea, the statement said.China had no immediate comment on the Australian allegations.The incident is not the first report of Chinese vessels pointing lasers at Australian aircraft.In May 2019, Australian pilots said they were targeted multiple times by commercial lasers during missions over the South China Sea.And in a report in June 2018, US military officials told CNN that there were at least 20 suspected Chinese laser incidents in the eastern Pacific from September 2017 to June 2018.Military tensions between China and Australia have been on the rise, and spiked in November when Canberra said it was entering a pact with the United States and United Kingdom to acquire nuclear-powered submarines.The day the sub deal was announced, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijan said Australia should "seriously consider whether to view China as a partner or a threat."
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Cyber Criminal activity associated with the financial Trojan programs has increased rapidly during the past few months. However, the Tor-based architecture is the favorite one with online criminals, to hide their bots and the botnet's Command-and-Control real location from the security researchers.
Security Researchers at anti-virus firm Kaspersky Lab have discovered a new Tor-based banking trojan, dubbed "ChewBacca" ("Trojan.Win32.Fsysna.fej") _x0081_,that steal banking credentials and hosted on a Tor .onion domain.
This protects the location of a server as well as the identity of the owner in most cases. Still there are drawbacks preventing many criminals from hosting their servers within Tor. Due to the overlay and structure, Tor is slower and timeouts are possible. Massive botnet activity may influence the whole network, as seen with Mevade, and therefore let researchers spot them more easily.
ChewBacca malware is not first that adopt Tor for anonymity, recently a new Zeus Trojan variant was captured in the wild that also based on Tor network and aimed at 64-bit systems.
Researchers did not mention that how they discovered Chewbacca, or the extent to which it has spread, but they note that the Malware is compiled with Free Pascal 2.7.1.
After execution of malware on the victim's windows system, it drops as spoolsv.exe in the startup folder and also drops a copy of Tor 0.2.3.25, which runs with a default listing on "localhost:9050"_x0081_. The Trojan then logs all keystrokes and sends the data back to the botnet controllers via Tor anonymity network.
The Malware also enumerates all running processes and reads their process memory. According to the researchers, The Command-and-Control server is developed using LAMP, that is based on Linux, Apache, MySQL and PHP.
Chewbacca is currently not offered in public (underground) forums, like other toolkits such as Zeus. Maybe this is in development or the malware is just privately used or shared.
The botnet's Command-and-Control server login page have an image of a character (ChewBacca) from the film series Star Wars.
We are expecting more complex and TOR-based botnets in the future. Stay tuned to +The Hacker News - Stay Safe.
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A new spear-phishing campaign is targeting professionals on LinkedIn with weaponized job offers in an attempt to infect targets with a sophisticated backdoor trojan called "more_eggs."
To increase the odds of success, the phishing lures take advantage of malicious ZIP archive files that have the same name as that of the victims' job titles taken from their LinkedIn profiles.
"For example, if the LinkedIn member's job is listed as Senior Account Executive—International Freight the malicious zip file would be titled Senior Account Executive—International Freight position (note the 'position' added to the end)," cybersecurity firm eSentire's Threat Response Unit (TRU) said in an analysis. "Upon opening the fake job offer, the victim unwittingly initiates the stealthy installation of the fileless backdoor, more_eggs."
Campaigns delivering more_eggs using the same modus operandi have been spotted at least since 2018, with the backdoor attributed to a malware-as-a-service (MaaS) provider called Golden Chickens. The adversaries behind this new wave of attacks remain unknown as yet, although more_eggs has been put to use by various cybercrime groups such as Cobalt, FIN6, and EvilNum in the past.
Once installed, more_eggs maintains a stealthy profile by hijacking legitimate Windows processes while presenting the decoy "employment application" document to distract targets from ongoing background tasks triggered by the malware. Furthermore, it can act as a conduit to retrieve additional payloads from an attacker-controlled server, such as banking trojans, ransomware, credential stealers, and even use the backdoor as a foothold in the victim's network so as to exfiltrate data.
If anything, the latest development is yet another indication of how threat actors are constantly tweaking their attacks with personalized lures in an attempt to trick unsuspecting users into downloading malware.
"Since the COVID pandemic, unemployment rates have risen dramatically. It is a perfect time to take advantage of job seekers who are desperate to find employment," the researchers said. "Thus, a customized job lure is even more enticing during these troubled times."
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(CNN)Questions were asked about Manchester City's English Premier League title defense after defeat by Norwich City. A 8-0 win over Watford on Saturday provided a comprehensive answer that Pep Guardiola's team is determined to keep league leaders Liverpool in their sights.Five goals came in the opening 20 minutes as Watford suffered another embarrassing defeat by City after last season's 6-0 thrashing in the FA Cup final.Bernardo Silva scored a hat-trick, with City's other goals coming from David Silva, Sergio Aguero, Riyad Mahrez, Nicolas Otamendi and Kevin de Bruyne.City's victory put them two points behind Liverpool, who play at Chelsea on Sunday, while Watford stay rooted to the bottom of the table on two points.Bernardo Silva, Sergio Aguero and David Silva all scored against Watford in City's 8-0 victory.READ: 19-year-old Håland scores hat-trick on Champions League debutRead MoreREAD: Liverpool stunned by Napoli in Champions LeagueDe Bruyne masterclassThis was City's record Premier League win, as the club went one goal better than the 7-0 success against Norwich in 2013. The Premier League's biggest margin of victory is Manchester United's 9-0 win over Ipswich in 1995.De Bruyne was superb for City throughout and quickly got down to work setting up David Silva after just 52 seconds.Watford keeper Ben Foster then brought down Riyad Mahrez, allowing Aguero to convert the penalty as the Argentine scored his seventh league goal of the season.Saturday proved a tough day af the office for Watford goalkeeper Ben Foster.READ: Liverpool battles back against NewcastleA Mahrez free-kick hit Watford's Tom Cleverley to deflect past Foster for the third, with Otamendi setting up Bernardo Silva to make it 4-0 following a De Bruyne corner.Otamendi's 18th-minute goal ensured City now holds the Premier League record for the fastest 5-0 lead.Early in the second half, Bernardo Silva got his second, before completing his hat-trick following a De Bruyne cross. The Belgian international capped a superb performance to score City's eighth.Kevin De Bruyne celebrates as he scores his team's eighth goal against Watford.READ: Liverpool looks to extend 100% domestic recordEarlier on Saturday, Leicester City moved up to third in the table after Brendan Rodgers' team came from behind to beat Tottenham Hotspur.Harry Kane's brilliantly instinctive finish gave Spurs the lead, but second-half goals from Ricardo Pereira and James Maddison completed an impressive win for Leicester at the King Power Stadium."We're six games in, we are not getting carried away," said Rodgers. "We had a tough start but I'm so pleased with the players' focus."READ: FIFA tells Iran -- Women have to be allowed into soccer stadiumsBoth teams had goals ruled out by the VAR system.Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino pinpointed the decision to rule out Serge Aurier's second-half goal -- Son Heung-Min was deemed marginally offside -- as the turning point in the game when the visitors were still 1-0 ahead."The emotion of the game changed. The belief it gave to Leicester made things happen differently in the last 10 minutes," said Pochettino."I'm only going to say that we all accept that system in the game and now I am not going to complain."
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Intego discovered a Multiplatform Java Malware called "Jacksbot" , which is infecting Windows, Linux and Mac systems.
The Jacksbot is described as a 'backdoor Trojan Java "on infected computers and collects system information, make screenshots, delete files, steal passwords and perform click fraud and DDoS attacks.
Researchers said,Although it can run on any platform that supports JRE, It appears likely that this trojan is intended to be dropped by another component that has not yet been identified. "There is a possibility that this malware presents itself as a Minecraft modification to unsuspecting users as it contains the special command 'MC for stealing Minecraft passwords from the compromised system," Johanne Demetria explain in post.
"However, the malware's focus is mainly on Windows. The malware writers behind JACKSBOT may just be testing the waters for a successful multiplatform malware; however for now they appear to be unwilling to invest the time and resources to develop the code more completely." TrendMicro said.
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In Brief
Google has released its monthly security patches for Android this week, addressing 17 critical vulnerabilities, 6 of which affect Android Mediaserver component that could be used to execute malicious code remotely.
Besides patches for Mediaserver, Google also fixed 4 critical vulnerabilities related to Qualcomm components discovered in Android handsets, including Google's Nexus 6P, Pixel XL, and Nexus 9 devices.
According to the Google security bulletin for Android published Monday, this month's security update is one of the largest security fixes the company ever compiled in a single month.
Google has split Android's monthly security bulletin into security "patch levels":
Partial security patch level (2017-05-01) covers patches for vulnerabilities that are common to all Android devices.
Complete security patch level (2017-05-05) includes additional fixes for hardware drivers as well as kernel components that are present only in some devices.
Critical RCE Flaw in Android Mediaserver
The most severe vulnerability exists in Mediaserver – an Android component that handles the processing of image and video files and has been a source of many issues over the past few years, including the critical Stagefright vulnerabilities.
According to the search engine giant, the Mediaserver vulnerability "could enable remote code execution on an affected device through multiple methods such as email, web browsing, and MMS when processing media files."
In other words, attackers could exploit the Mediaserver vulnerability by tricking users into downloading a specially crafted multimedia file on their devices, or sharing the media file via email or other messaging apps and remotely execute arbitrary code.
Interestingly, this vulnerability could be triggered while you sleep, as it's not even necessary for you to open the file because as soon as your device receives the media file, the file system will cause Mediaserver to process it.
The vulnerability was discovered in early January and affects Android versions 4.4.4 KitKat through 7.1.2 Nougat.
Kernel-level Vulnerabilities in Qualcomm
Google has also patched four critical vulnerabilities that stemmed from Qualcomm components and could allow an attacker to gain high-level (root) privileges on an Android device.
Two critical vulnerabilities (CVE-2016-10275 and CVE-2016-10276) in Qualcomm bootloader create conditions ripe for an elevation of privilege attacks, enabling "a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel," according to the bulletin.
Another critical Qualcomm bug (CVE-2017-0604) in power driver could also allow a local malicious application to execute malicious code on the device within the context of the kernel, which is the most privileged area of the OS.
No Evidence of Flaws Being Exploited in the Wild
Six of the 17 critical patches are addressed with the 2017-05-01 partial security patches, while the remaining 11 critical security flaws affecting various drivers, libraries and bootloaders are patched in the 2017-05-05 complete patch level.
Good news is that Google assured its users that there are no reports of any of the security vulnerabilities being exploited in the wild.
Google says, having two patch levels "provide Android partners with the flexibility to more quickly fix a subset of vulnerabilities that are similar across all Android devices."
So, users are strongly advised to download the most recent Android security update to keep their devices protected against any potential attack.
Nexus and Pixel devices will receive the complete patch in an over-the-air update in the coming days, or the owners can download it directly from Google's developer site.
It's also worth noting that Google revealed last week that the Nexus 6 and Nexus 9, which were released in November 2014, would no longer be "guaranteed" to receive security updates after October 2017.
A similar timeline has been offered for newer Pixel and Pixel XL handsets of October 2019. After that, the tech giant will only push necessary security fixes to those devices.
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Security researchers have revealed a new attack to steal passwords, encryption keys and other sensitive information stored on most modern computers, even those with full disk encryption.
The attack is a new variation of a traditional Cold Boot Attack, which is around since 2008 and lets attackers steal information that briefly remains in the memory (RAM) after the computer is shut down.
However, to make the cold boot attacks less effective, most modern computers come bundled with a safeguard, created by the Trusted Computing Group (TCG), that overwrites the contents of the RAM when the power on the device is restored, preventing the data from being read.
Now, researchers from Finnish cyber-security firm F-Secure figured out a new way to disable this overwrite security measure by physically manipulating the computer's firmware, potentially allowing attackers to recover sensitive data stored on the computer after a cold reboot in a matter of few minutes.
"Cold boot attacks are a known method of obtaining encryption keys from devices. But the reality is that attackers can get their hands on all kinds of information using these attacks. Passwords, credentials to corporate networks, and any data stored on the machine are at risk," the security firm warns in a blog post published today.
Video Demonstration of the New Cold Boot Attack
Using a simple tool, researchers were able to rewrite the non-volatile memory chip that contains the memory overwrite settings, disable it, and enable booting from external devices. You can also watch the video demonstration performing the attack below.
Like the traditional cold boot attack, the new attack also requires physical access to the target device as well as right tools to recover remaining data in the computer's memory.
"It's not exactly easy to do, but it is not a hard enough issue to find and exploit for us to ignore the probability that some attackers have already figured this out," says F-Secure principal security consultant Olle Segerdahl, one the two researchers.
"It's not exactly the kind of thing that attackers looking for easy targets will use. But it is the kind of thing that attackers looking for bigger phish, like a bank or large enterprise, will know how to use."
How Microsoft Windows and Apple Users Can Prevent Cold Boot Attacks
According to Olle and his colleague Pasi Saarinen, their new attack technique is believed to be effective against nearly all modern computers and even Apple Macs and can't be patched easily and quickly.
The two researchers, who will present their findings today at a security conference, say they have already shared their findings with Microsoft, Intel, and Apple, and helped them explore possible mitigation strategies.
Microsoft updated its guidance on Bitlocker countermeasures in response to the F-Secure's findings, while Apple said that its Mac devices equipped with an Apple T2 Chip contain security measures designed to protect its users against this attack.
But for Mac computers without the latest T2 chip, Apple recommended users to set a firmware password in order to help harden the security of their computers.
Intel has yet to comment on the matter.
The duo says there's no reliable way to "prevent or block the cold boot attack once an attacker with the right know-how gets their hands on a laptop," but suggest the companies can configure their devices so that attackers using cold boot attacks won't find anything fruitful to steal.
Meanwhile, the duo recommends IT departments to configure all company computers to either shut down or hibernate (not enter sleep mode) and require users to enter their BitLocker PIN whenever they power up or restore their PCs.
Attackers could still perform a successful cold boot attack against computers configured like this, but since the encryption keys are not stored in the memory when a machine hibernates or shuts down, there will be no valuable information for an attacker to steal.
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(CNN)At just three years old, Serena Williams' daughter is discovering that practice makes perfect on the tennis court.The 23-time grand slam winner posted a video on Instagram of her daughter, Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr., perfecting her swing on the court, with the help of coach Patrick Mouratoglou. Williams, 39, captioned the clip: "Tennis Diaries." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Serena Williams (@serenawilliams)
In the footage shared on Monday, Olympia -- whom Williams shares with Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian -- is dressed casually in a denim jacket and jeans while taking direction from Mouratoglou, who also coaches her mom. The toddler is currently in Melbourne supporting Williams' quest for a 24th grand slam singles title at the Australian Open. Read More"Olympia is going to be the TRUTH! #legacy" one fan responded. Another wrote: "Start em young. How old were you and Venus when you started? If she follows that dream....great. If she follows another.....great as well. Give her choices and experience."Williams first revealed that Olympia was following in her footsteps in July last year, sharing a carousel of Instagram pictures of the pair side-by-side on the court, wearing matching purple outfits. Serena Williams powers through in Australian Open as Venus bows outREAD: Jessica Pegula, daughter of NFL team owners, makes Australian Open quartersOlympia looked like a natural athlete as she held a racquet in her little hands and showed off her seriously impressive stance. Williams, who was taught to play tennis from a young age by her father, Richard, previously revealed she had signed her daughter up for tennis lessons -- without telling the instructor who she was. In a video posted to her Instagram stories in October, she said: "Don't even start with me, because I'm not giving her tennis lessons; I signed her up for some. But the lady has no idea that it's my daughter, so we'll see how that goes." She added: "I'm not a pushy mom, but I know how I like techniques, so I'm gonna make sure she's good at teaching Olympia some techniques."
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Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed details about an early development version of a nascent ransomware strain called Diavol that has been linked to threat actors behind the infamous TrickBot syndicate.
The latest findings from IBM X-Force show that the ransomware sample shares similarities to other malware that has been attributed to the cybercrime gang, thus establishing a clearer connection between the two.
In early July, Fortinet revealed specifics of an unsuccessful ransomware attack involving Diavol payload targeting one of its customers, highlighting the malware's source code overlaps with that of Conti and its technique of reusing some language from Egregor ransomware in its ransom note.
"As part of a rather unique encryption procedure, Diavol operates using user-mode Asynchronous Procedure Calls (APCs) without a symmetric encryption algorithm," Fortinet researchers previously said. "Usually, ransomware authors aim to complete the encryption operation in the shortest amount of time. Asymmetric encryption algorithms are not the obvious choice as they [are] significantly slower than symmetric algorithms."
Now an assessment of an earlier sample of Diavol — compiled on March 5, 2020, and submitted to VirusTotal on January 27, 2021 — has revealed insights into the malware's development process, with the source code capable of terminating arbitrary processes and prioritizing file types to encrypt based on a pre-configured list of extensions defined by the attacker.
What's more, the initial execution of the ransomware leads to it collecting system information, which is used to generate a unique identifier that's nearly identical to the Bot ID generated by TrickBot malware, except for the addition of the Windows username field.
A point of similarity between the two ransomware samples concerns the registration process, where the victim machine uses the identifier created in the previous step to register itself with a remote server. "This registration to the botnet is nearly identical in both samples analyzed," IBM Security's Charlotte Hammond and Chris Caridi said. "The primary difference is the registration URL changing from https://[server_address]/bots/register to https://[server_address]/BnpOnspQwtjCA/register."
But unlike the fully functional variant, the development sample not only has its file enumeration and encryption functions left unfinished, it also directly encrypts files with the extension ".lock64" as they are encountered, instead of relying on asynchronous procedure calls. A second deviation detected by IBM is that the original file is not deleted post encryption, thus obviating the need for a decryption key.
Diavol's links to TrickBot also boil down to the fact that HTTP headers used for command-and-control (C2) communication are set to prefer Russian language content, which matches the language used by the operators.
Another clue tying the malware to the Russian threat actors is the code for checking the language on the infected system to filter out victims in Russia or the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) region, a known tactic adopted by the TrickBot group.
"Collaboration between cybercrime groups, affiliate programs and code reuse are all parts of a growing ransomware economy," the researchers said. "The Diavol code is relatively new in the cybercrime area, and less infamous than Ryuk or Conti, but it likely shares ties to the same operators and blackhat coders behind the scenes."
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The GPS expert Todd Humphreys, professors at the University of Texas, demonstrated that just using a cheap apparatus composed by a small antenna, an electronic GPS "spoofer" built in $3,000 and with a laptop, it is possible to exploit GPS vulnerability to obtain control of sophisticated navigation system aboard a 210-foot super-yacht in the Mediterranean Sea.
Humphreys demonstrated the exploit of a GPS vulnerability aboard the yacht "White Rose of Drachs" commanded by Capt. Andrew Schofield, the official and his crew were stunned by the effect of the attack.
Humphreys is a famous GPS experts, we met him last year when we discussed about drones hacking. The Assistant Professor of the University of Texas with his team has created the world's most powerful GPS spoofer that was tested on GPS-based timing devices used in mobile phone transmitters.
Humphreys reported the results of his experiment to the Foxnews explaining how his team exploited the GPS system of the vessel: "We injected our spoofing signals into its GPS antennas and we're basically able to control its navigation system with our spoofing signals," 'Imagine shutting down a port. Imagine running a ship aground. These are the kinds of implications we're worried about." "For maritime traffic, there are big implications," "You've got 90 percent of the world's cargo going across the seas. Imagine shutting down a port. Imagine running a ship aground. These are the kinds of implications we're worried about."
The concept is simple, the researchers provided counterfeit GPS signals to the yacht providing inaccurate information on its position to hijack it, potentially the attack could be used to disorient any vessel with serious consequences without victims notification.
Captain Andrew Schofield was shocked by the results of the attack: "Professor Humphreys and his team did a number of attacks and basically we on the bridge were absolutely unaware of any difference," "I was gobsmacked -- but my entire deck team was similarly gobsmacked," Schofield he told Fox News.
The scope of these attacks is hijack GPS systems of victims causing collisions or other damage. A collision of a cruise ship or an oil tanker would lead to devastating consequences in terms of loss of human lives and environmental impact, we have observed it the cases of the Costa Concordia and the Exxon Valdez.
The impact of GPS hacking is not limited to the maritime environment, same kind of attack could be conducted against aircrafts or any other system that use GPS technology: "You're actually moving about a kilometer off of your intended track in a parallel line and you could be running aground instead of going through the proper channel," "Going after an expensive vessel on the seas and going after a commercial airliner has a lot of parallels," Humphreys said.
The latest experiment conducted by Humphreys demonstrated the possibility to control victim's GPS system exploiting the GPS vulnerability, not only to interfere with it.
"Before we couldn't control the UAV. We could only push it off course. This time my students have designed a closed loop controller such that they can dictate the heading of this vessel even when the vessel wants to go a different direction," Humphreys said.
The government is concerned by the possible exploitation of critical GPS vulnerabilities, Humphreys was called before Congress to speak with officials from the FAA, CIA and Pentagon, but according the researcher the Department of Homeland Security still been "fumbling around in the dark" on GPS security, doing little to address the threat.
Texas Congressman Mike McCaul, chairman of the Homeland Security Committee expressed its concerns on the GPS security issues and remarked with Senators Coburn and Collins the necessity to address these critical threats.
"It's a very serious homeland security issue that we've asked the secretary to review and look at and she's never responded to my requests," "The department seems to be thumbing its nose at it, saying it has no jurisdiction over this issue and not really showing any interest in this issue at all."
It's important to share information on possible effect of attacks against GPS systems, it could be too easy for the hackers to acquire a low cost appliance to cause serious damage, Schofield commented the results of the experiment with the following eloquent statements: "People need to know this kind of thing is possible with a relatively small budget and they can with a very simple system steer the ship off-course -- without the Captain knowing".
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VMware has rolled out patches to address a critical security vulnerability in vCenter Server that could be leveraged by an adversary to execute arbitrary code on the server.
Tracked as CVE-2021-21985 (CVSS score 9.8), the issue stems from a lack of input validation in the Virtual SAN (vSAN) Health Check plug-in, which is enabled by default in the vCenter Server. "A malicious actor with network access to port 443 may exploit this issue to execute commands with unrestricted privileges on the underlying operating system that hosts vCenter Server," VMware said in its advisory.
VMware vCenter Server is a server management utility that's used to control virtual machines, ESXi hosts, and other dependent components from a single centralized location. The flaw affects vCenter Server versions 6.5, 6.7, and 7.0 and Cloud Foundation versions 3.x and 4.x. VMware credited Ricter Z of 360 Noah Lab for reporting the vulnerability.
The patch release also rectifies an authentication issue in the vSphere Client that affects Virtual SAN Health Check, Site Recovery, vSphere Lifecycle Manager, and VMware Cloud Director Availability plug-ins (CVE-2021-21986, CVSS score: 6.5), thereby allowing an attacker to carry out actions permitted by the plug-ins without any authentication.
While VMware is strongly recommending customers to apply the "emergency change," the company has published a workaround to set the plug-ins as incompatible. "Disablement of these plug-ins will result in a loss of management and monitoring capabilities provided by the plug-ins," the company noted.
"Organizations who have placed their vCenter Servers on networks that are directly accessible from the Internet [...] should audit their systems for compromise," VMware added. "They should also take steps to implement more perimeter security controls (firewalls, ACLs, etc.) on the management interfaces of their infrastructure."
CVE-2021-21985 is the second critical vulnerability that VMware has rectified in the vCenter Server. Earlier this February, it resolved a remote code execution vulnerability in a vCenter Server plug-in (CVE-2021-21972) that could be abused to run commands with unrestricted privileges on the underlying operating system hosting the server.
The fixes for the vCenter flaws also come after the company patched another critical remote code execution bug in VMware vRealize Business for Cloud (CVE-2021-21984, CVSS score: 9.8) due to an unauthorized endpoint that could be exploited by a malicious actor with network access to run arbitrary code on the appliance.
Previously, VMware had rolled out updates to remediate multiple flaws in VMware Carbon Black Cloud Workload and vRealize Operations Manager solutions.
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China is the birth place for most of malicious Android apps
Mobile malware is rising, and there have been explosions in the world of viruses and Trojans. Virus makers are now targeting mobile platforms- thanks to their growing popularity. If we take the statistics from last 6 months, the chances of Android smart phones to be infected have doubled. A new report by TrendMicro says that "China is the birth place for most of malicious Android applications" .
Even Android OS is also becoming more and more popular in China. This growth of Android users in China, however, seems to do little for the rocky relationship between Google and the Chinese government. It has been reported that access to the Google Android Market has been intermittent since 2009.
According to a Report by TrendMicro, The inconvenience in accessing the Android Market, one not experienced by users from other countries, can be considered a big factor in the Chinese users' preference in terms of where to download their Android applications.Early third-party app stores were founded as an online forum for some Android fans. The fans discussed topics about the OS, and also released a few applications in the online forum. After the Android Market became inaccessible to China-based users last year, the forums became popular among Android developers and users.
The biggest malware threat to Android users is probably the rogue application model. In this model, attackers pirate a legit program and add some malicious code to it. Then they release it into the market. This repackaging of legit apps poses a lot of danger, and has proved to be an effective and strong malware agent.
To make sure their app stays in the market, attackers use the upgrade attack. They give a clean app in the beginning. And then they offer an upgrade, which is infected with virus. And since most people have automatic updates on, within some time, every device that has the app becomes infected.Mahaffey observed that hackers use different techniques to make their malware spread out widely. Mobile malware is still on its experimental stage. It should be curbed before it becomes a big problem.
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TigerBot - SMS Controlled Android Malware Stealing Information
A new form of Android malware controlled via SMS messages has been discovered and the malware can record phone calls, upload the device's GPS location, and reboot the phone, among other things.
Researchers at NQ Mobile, working alongside researchers at North Carolina State University, have discovered this Android malware called "TigerBot", differs from "traditional" malware in that it is controlled via SMS rather than from a command & control (C&C) server on the Internet.
A common aspect of Android malware is the use of a command and control server that tells the malware what to do next and acts as a repository for any captured passwords or banking information.
The current information about this malware show that it can execute a range of commands including uploading the phone's current location, sending SMS messages, and even recording phone calls. It works by intercepting SMS messages sent to the phone and checking to see if they are commands for it to act. If they are, it executes the command and then prevents the message from being seen by the user.
TigerBot tries to hide itself from the user by not showing any icon on the home screen and by using legitimate sounding app names (like System) or by copying names from trusted vendors like Google or Adobe.
Based on our current analysis, it supports the following commands:
Record the sounds in the phone, including the phone calls, the surrounding sounds and etc.
Change the network setting.
Upload the current GPS location.
Capture and upload the image.
Send SMS to a particular number.
Reboot the phone.
Kill other running processes.
To avoid becoming a victim, Only download applications from trusted sources, reputable application stores, and markets, and be sure to check reviews, ratings and developer information before downloading.
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Smart devices are growing at an exponential pace with the increase in connecting devices embedded in cars, retail systems, refrigerators, televisions and countless other things people use in their everyday life, but security and privacy are the key issues for such applications, which still face some enormous number of challenges.
Millions of Network-connected electricity meters or Smart meters used in Spain are susceptible to cyberattack by hackers due to lack of basic and essential security controls that could put Millions of homes at risk, according to studies carried out by a pair of security researcher.
HACKERS TO CAUSE BLACKOUT AND BILL FRAUD
The security vulnerabilities found in the electricity meters could allow an intruder to carry out billing fraud or even shut down electric power to homes and cause blackouts.
Poorly protected credentials inside the devices could let attackers take control over the gadgets, warn the researchers. The utility that deployed the meters is now improving the devices' security to help protect its network.
During an interview on Monday, the security researchers, Javier Vazquez Vidal and Alberto Garcia Illera, said the vulnerability affects smart meters installed by a Spanish utility company, the one on which the Spanish government relied in order to improve national energy efficiency.
The research carried out by the duo researchers will soon be presented at Black Hat Europe hacking conference in Amsterdam next week. The duo will explain on how they reverse engineered smart meters and found blatant security weaknesses that allowed them to commandeer the devices to shut down power or perform electricity usage fraud over the power line communications network.
SMART METER'S REPROGRAMMABLE MEMORY RUNS FLAWED CODE
The Vulnerability resides in the memory chips of the smart meters, which are reprogrammable and contain flawed code that could be exploited to remotely shut down power supplies to individual households, tamper meter readings, transfer meter readings to other customers and insert "network worms" that could leave millions of homes without power causing widespread blackouts.
Though the researchers will not provide any detail explanation on what they actually did, until the problems are fixed by the Smart meter vendor. "We are not releasing the exact details; we are not going to say how we did this," Garcia Illera, a security expert involved in the smart meter research, told Reuters. "This issue has to be fixed."
WEAK ENCRYPTION USED
According to the two researchers, the Smart meters use relatively easy to crack symmetric AES-128 encryption, which was designed to secure communications and prevent tampering with billing systems by fraudsters.
There are three major utility companies in Spain — Endesa, Iberdrola and E.ON and collectively 8 million Smart meters have been installed on over 30 percent of households. However, the two haven't yet disclosed the specific smart meter manufacturer at this time.
The duo said they could take full control of the meter box, switch its unique ID to impersonate other customer boxes or turn the meter itself into a weapon for launching attacks against the power network.
"Oh wait? We can do this? We were really scared," said Vazquez Vidal, another security expert involved in the smart meter research. "We started thinking about the impact this could have. What happens if someone wants to attack an entire country?" he said.
Internet of Things (IoTs) promise to make life easier in countless ways, but as with any technology seeing an upswing, it's to be expected that there will be associated security issues and challenges and this was what happened with the Smart meters in Spain.
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