Is this a Cold War FBI policy? We know the
targets, we know some of the techniques, are we ready for the next
round?
Cynthia McFadden, William M. Arkin, Kevin Monahan,
and Ken Dilanian report:
The U.S. intelligence community developed substantial evidence that state websites or voter registration systems in seven states were compromised by Russian-backed covert operatives prior to the 2016 election — but never told the states involved, according to multiple U.S. officials.
Top-secret intelligence requested by President Barack Obama in his last weeks in office identified seven states where analysts — synthesizing months of work — had reason to believe Russian operatives had compromised state websites or databases.
Three senior intelligence officials told NBC News that the intelligence community believed the states as of January 2017 were Alaska, Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Texas and Wisconsin.
Read more on NBC,
as their coverage goes beyond just these seven states, and they are
reporting on a very concerning issue, even if, as they report, “All
state and federal officials who spoke to NBC News agree that no votes
were changed and no voters were taken off the rolls.” At least for
those seven states. But what about the others? So far, there
doesn’t seem to be a lot of evidence of successful penetration much
less data tampering, but was
2016 just a test run for something more in 2018?
No honesty among thieves?
Thanatos
Ransomware Makes Data Recovery Impossible
A
newly discovered ransomware family is generating a different
encryption key for each of the encrypted files but saves none of
them, thus making data recovery impossible.
Dubbed
Thanatos,
the malware was discovered by MalwareHunterTeam and already analyzed
by several other security researchers.
When
encrypting files on a computer, the malware appends the .THANATOS
extension to them. After completing the encryption, the malware
connects to a specific URL to report back, thus allowing attackers to
keep track of the number of infected victims.
The
malware also generates an autorun key to open the ransom note every
time the user logs in. In that note, the victim is instructed to
send $200 to a listed crypto-coin address. Victims are also
instructed to contact the attackers via email to receive a decryption
program.
Thanatos’
operators allow victims to pay the ransom in Bitcoin, Ethereum, or
Bitcoin Cash, thus becoming the first ransomware to accept Bitcoin
Cash payments, Bleeping Computer’s Lawrence Abrams points
out.
The
issue with the new ransomware is that it, because
it doesn’t save the encryption keys, files cannot be decrypted
normally. However, victims don’t know that and might
end up paying the ransom in the hope they can recover their files.
Something my Data Management students should kick
around for a while.
Epic
failure of data integration allowed 17 people to be murdered in
Parkland
Leaving the gun debate to others, I propose that
we focus on something more easily fixable about the Florida shooting:
the epic failure of data integration that allowed this tragedy to
happen.
“Every single red flag was present. If this kid
was missed, there is no system.”
Broward
County Public Defender Howard Finkelstein is right – there was
a staggering amount of information available in multiple databases
about Nikolas Cruz. But it wasn’t connected.
“Minority Report” is already here.
About to
Break the Law? Chinese Police Are Already On To You
Authorities in China’s troubled, heavily
surveilled region of Xinjiang are deploying a platform that marshals
the troves of data being collected to identify and pre-emptively
detain potential troublemakers, according to a rights group.
Human Rights Watch said Tuesday the “predictive
policing” platform combines feeds from surveillance cameras with
other personal data such as phone use, travel records and religious
orientation, and then analyzes the information to identify suspicious
individuals.
(Related) ...and not just in China.
Palantir
has secretly been using New Orleans to test its predictive policing
technology
Palantir deployed a
predictive policing system in New Orleans that even city council
members don’t know about
… According to Ronal
Serpas, the department’s chief at the time, one of the tools used
by the New Orleans Police Department to identify members of gangs
like 3NG and the 39ers came from the Silicon Valley company Palantir.
The company provided software to a secretive NOPD program that
traced people’s ties to other gang members, outlined criminal
histories, analyzed social media, and predicted the likelihood that
individuals would commit violence or become a victim. As part of the
discovery process in Lewis’ trial, the government turned over more
than 60,000 pages of documents detailing evidence gathered against
him from confidential informants, ballistics, and other sources —
but they made no mention of the NOPD’s partnership with Palantir,
according to a source familiar with the 39ers trial.
Another step toward automating the legal business?
New on LLRX
– From Judging Lawyers to Predicting Outcomes
Via LLRX
– From
Judging Lawyers to Predicting Outcomes – Itai Gurari
discusses Judicata’s latest technology solution – Clerk – that
evaluates briefs filed in court, grading them on three dimensions:
Arguments, Drafting, and Context. The grading reflects factors like
how strong the brief’s arguments are, how persuasive the relied
upon cases are, and the extent to which the brief cites precedent
that supports the desired outcome.
We could do this here. Just saying…
From IDF to
Inc: The Israeli Cybersecurity Startup Conveyor Belt
Perspective. Big tech companies see opportunity
in Health Care?
Google
sister-company Verily is plotting a move into a fast-growing corner
of the health insurance industry
-
Verily's new hires and partnerships point to a move into health insurance.
-
The company is looking to take on risk for patient populations and sharing in the upside if it can bring down health-care costs, sources tell CNBC.
-
The opportunity is currently in the tens of billions, with the potential to grow into a trillion dollar market.
Perspective.
What is it worth to Amazon to be able to enter
your home?
Amazon To
Purchase Video Doorbell Maker Ring For Over $1 Billion
(Related) Cheaper than an ambulance?
Passengers
Who Call Uber Instead Of An Ambulance Put Drivers At Risk
A recent
(yet to be peer-reviewed) study found that, after Uber enters new
markets, the rates of ambulance rides typically go down, meaning
fewer people call professionals in favor of the cheaper option.
People have always taken taxis to the hospital — there’s the
classic example of the woman going into labor in the back of a cab —
but ride-hail technology makes it much easier, especially in less
densely populated cities. This money-saving tactic might make sense
for people in noncritical condition, but it puts ride-hail drivers in
an uncomfortable position. They’re forced to choose between
assuming potential legal liability if something goes wrong, or
dealing with a sense of guilt and the fear of getting
a lower rating if they decline or cancel the ride.
Perspective. And you thought only their brains
were atrophying,,,
Children
struggle to hold pencils due to too much tech, doctors say
The
Guardian.com: “Children are increasingly finding it hard to
hold pens and pencils because of an excessive use of technology,
senior paediatric doctors have warned. An overuse of touchscreen
phones and tablets is preventing
children’s finger muscles from developing sufficiently
to enable them to hold a pencil correctly, they say. “Children are
not coming into school with the hand strength and dexterity they had
10 years ago,” said Sally Payne, the head paediatric occupational
therapist at the Heart of England foundation NHS Trust. “Children
coming into school are being given a pencil but are increasingly not
be able to hold it because they don’t have the fundamental movement
skills….”
“It’s easier to give a child an iPad than encouraging them to do muscle-building play such as building blocks, cutting and sticking, or pulling toys and ropes. Because of this, they’re not developing the underlying foundation skills they need to grip and hold a pencil.”
I cannot help but say, I told you so – it is not
only kids who cannot hold pencils or pens and actually write on paper
anymore – it is adults as well. And how many people do you know
(excluding librarians please) who actually type – with two hand
over a keyboard, using all their respective fingers (I am raising my
hand but you cannot see me) – and I own so many pens that I am
afraid of being shamed for what is considered an odd collection of
otherwise “useless objects.” I actually use them daily to write
real cards – to people I know – and to take notes – every day –
but then – I am a librarian/researcher/knowledge manager – who
does
not own a phone that I can “swipe.” I have an 8
year old “smartphone” with whom I have an increasingly
contentious relationship – but I digress. If people do not use the
muscles in their hands, will they eventually be of no use (an
unimaginable fate for some, most..of us?).
For my techies.
A funny
look at the unintended consequences of technology | Chuck Nice
Technology should work for us, but what happens
when it doesn't? Comedian Chuck Nice explores the unintended
consequences of technological advancement and human interaction --
with hilarious results.
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