Tuesday, December 31, 2019


Somehow, this report does not give me a warm, fuzzy feeling. What happened? Did they only look for evidence that Russia interfered?
Feds: No Evidence Hackers Disrupted North Carolina Voting
A federal investigation didn’t turn up any evidence that cyber attacks were responsible for computer errors that disrupted voting in a North Carolina county in 2016, according to a report issued Monday.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s report said it didn’t identify any malware or remote access to the Durham County Board of Elections systems that it analyzed.
Laptops used in some Durham County precincts on Election Day in November 2016 showed inaccurate data to poll workers, such as erroneously identifying voters as having already voted and identifying registered voters as being unregistered.




Even a lawyer should have figured this out.
Vadodara lawyer loses Rs 70,000 in cyber fraud, many more cheated.
Dave said that he had received a message on WhatsApp from one Naveen Kumar on December 25 asking him for registration of his marriage. Kumar told Dave that he had found his number through a search portal providing contact details of different service providers.
Dave responded to Kumar on Saturday and informed him about the documents which he would need for registration. During the conversation, Kumar told Dave that he works in the Indian Army currently posted in Delhi and would be coming to Vadodara on January 1. When Dave said that he would charge Rs 5,000 for the registration and asked him to transfer money through Google Pay, Kumar said that he will have to verify first.
Kumar asked him to transfer Rs 20,000 in his army camp’s bank account saying he would transfer it back. “I transferred Rs 20,000 four times but every time he said that the transaction has failed and no money was received by him. I then transferred just Rs 10,000,” Dave told TOI. Although he received an sms intimating that Rs 90,000 had been debited from his account, he got only Rs 20,000 back. “I have only received sms of credit, but there is no entry of it in my passbook,” Dave said.
As Dave informed about this fraud in a WhatsApp group of lawyers, several other lawyers came forward saying that they too were conned similarly.




It ain’t easy.
How to spot a bot (or not)
First Draft – The main indicators of online automation, co-ordination and inauthentic activity. “First Draft has put together a number of indicators that might suggest — but not proof — automated activity online. Bot detection is no simple task… From talking with academics and researchers, studying  the work of others, and carrying out our own investigations, First Draft has put together a list of indicators to help anyone identify suspicious online activity. The list of indicators is broken down by category: the account’s pattern of activity, account information, content posted by the account, and network of other accounts it may be a part of. Within each category are different metrics which are red flags for automation…”




Just another tool. (Where would Amazon see your hands?)
Amazon files patent for tech to identify you using the veins in your hand
USA Today: “What if you could pay for your groceries using your veins? Amazon filed a patent for technology that could identify you by scanning the wrinkles in the palm of your hand and by using a light to see beneath your skin to your blood vessels. The resulting images could be used to identify you as a shopper at Amazon Go stores. It was previously reported that the Seattle-based tech giant might install these hi-tech scanners in Whole Foods grocery stores. However, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office published an application on Thursday that suggests the e-commerce behemoth sets its sites on Amazon Go stores. Many of the inventors named on the application include Amazon Go executives such as vice president Dili Kumar and senior manager Manoj Aggarwal. Engineer Nikolai Orlov, who previously lead Amazon Go projects, was also listed as an inventor…”




On the other hand, technology works both ways.
Will the digital age kill off spying? CIA in crisis as facial recognition, biometrics and AI make it increasingly difficult for agents to maintain their cover abroad
  • Some foreign governments no longer see the need to physically follow CIA officers because facial recognition and surveillance is so advanced
  • U.S. intelligence agencies are facing a growing crisis because developments in technology are making it increasingly more difficult to conceal operatives
  • Given the advances in technology, some intelligence officials across the world are now simply hiding in plain sight using their real identities




Perspective.
IN A NEW MILESTONE, THE INTERNET WILL ACCOUNT FOR HALF OF AD SPENDING IN 2020
For the first time, 
the internet in 2020 will account for more than half of both U.S. and worldwide ad spending.
That’s a key takeaway from Ad Age Marketing Fact Pack 2020, our annual guide to marketers, media and agencies. You can download a free 
copy at AdAge.com
/resources.




For my students, mostly.



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