Summary and warning.
https://www.wired.com/story/ransomware-2020-headed-down-dire-path/
Ransomware Is Headed Down a Dire Path
… Though some researchers say that the scale and severity of ransomware attacks crossed a bright line in 2020, others describe this year as simply the next step in a gradual and, unfortunately, predictable devolution. After years spent honing their techniques, attackers are growing bolder. They’ve begun to incorporate other types of extortion like blackmail into their arsenals, by exfiltrating an organization’s data and then threatening to release it if the victim doesn’t pay an additional fee. Most significantly, ransomware attackers have transitioned from a model in which they hit lots of individuals and accumulated many small ransom payments to one where they carefully plan attacks against a smaller group of large targets from which they can demand massive ransoms. The antivirus firm Emsisoft found that the average requested fee has increased from about $5,000 in 2018 to about $200,000 this year.
Start planning now, avoid the panic later (soon?)
EU’s New Digital Markets and Digital Services Act Increase Antitrust Pressure on Big Tech
Already facing a number of investigations and fines under the existing General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) rules, the Big Tech companies are feeling even more pressure in Europe with the proposal of two new antitrust policies. Together the “Digital Markets Act” and “Digital Services Act” would limit use of personal data and require social media platforms to do more policing of user-created content.
… The Digital Services Act and its companion bill would collectively give regulators the ability to increase fines on Big Tech companies, and would introduce the prospect of requiring them to break up or be banned from the EU entirely if they commit repeat offenses.
The Digital Services Act addresses user content hosted on Big Tech’s various platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter. Firms of this size would be required to be much more active in policing their own territories for illegal content: the sale of illegal goods and services, human trafficking, terrorism, child abuse and things of that nature. The Digital Markets Act addresses the increasing concentration of social media and e-commerce power in the hands of a relative few major online players. These Big Tech heavyweights are branded “gatekeepers” by the Act and would be subject to a new package of rules to prevent anticompetitive behavior, such as being limited in their use of information of business users to develop and deploy competing services.
And industry security… (Podcast)
Critical Update: Why Having Artificial Intelligence Talent is a National Security Issue
… Dr. José-Marie Griffiths, president of Dakota State University and a member of the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, told Nextgov’s Critical Update podcast that beefing up the federal workforce’s AI capabilities is more than imperative—it’s an urgent national security concern.
The U.S. is competing with China when it comes to AI, Griffiths said, describing China as “all in” on ramping up AI capabilities to support economic security and establish a military advantage.
… Listen to the full episode below or download and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform, including Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.
Perspective.
Industry Perspective: How AI is Revolutionizing Business Processes
eWEEK EXPERT Q&A: We're seeing more AI in more apps in more places than we've ever seen before: wearables, cars, productivity apps, military, health care, home entertainment--the list is lengthy. This expert explains how and why.
‘cause lawyers are becoming more technical…
https://www.bespacific.com/top-5-legal-technology-stories-of-2020/
Top 5 legal technology stories of 2020
Via LLRX – Top 5 legal technology stories of 2020 – Nicole L. Black discusses the wide ranging effects on the legal technology space from the pandemic across all corners of the legal technology world. The shift to remote work had a dramatic impact on both the practice of law and the business of law, resulting in the rapid—and singularly remarkable—adoption of technology at rates never before seen. In some cases, the transition was a smooth one, and in others, it was a spectacular disaster. Good or bad, the results of the pandemic’s impact were undoubtedly notable—and newsworthy. In her article Black focuses on a few topics that especially resonated with her tech savvy readers and colleagues.
Perspective.
The year shopping changed forever
… At the end of last year, only around 13 percent of retail purchases — excluding auto and gas sales — were made online, according to Mastercard. By the end of 2020, that figure stands at around 20 percent, or $1 out of every $5. During normal recent years, when e-commerce growth rates averaged between 12 percent and 16 percent, that kind of jump would have taken several years to happen. But US e-commerce sales will have grown more than 30 percent in 2020, and there’s no going back.
Amazon, unsurprisingly, has been a huge winner of this dramatic shift, growing its US retail business an estimated 39 percent this year and increasing its market share to 39 percent of all online retail in the US, according to eMarketer.
(Related)
https://www.ft.com/content/095d73d5-a7a6-4acc-9dcc-9ee3e3d1fff4
Amazon’s advertising business booms in pandemic
The surge in online shopping triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic has put Amazon on course for its first-ever $100bn quarter, but it has also boosted an overlooked part of the company’s business: advertising.
As more and more merchants cram on to Amazon’s vast marketplace, brands that want to stand out are spending heavily on ads.
As a result, Amazon’s “other” business unit, which is made up almost entirely of its ads business, is growing faster than its retail, cloud computing and Prime subscription divisions.
According to FactSet, a financial data company, Amazon’s “other” unit will make $21bn in revenue in 2020, a 47 per cent jump on last year.
When Mr Zillman creates a list, it is usually exhaustive. Always something unique to find.
https://www.bespacific.com/financial-sources-on-the-internet-2021/
Financial Sources on the Internet 2021
Via LLRX – Financial Sources on the Internet 2021 – Marcus P. Zillman, new guide comprises a list of actionable financial resources from the U.S. and abroad, organized by four subject areas: Corporate Conference Calls Resources, Financial Sources, Financial Sources Search Engines, and Venture Capital Sources. Content includes: sources for news and updates on business, corporations and marketplaces; sources from the NGO/IGO sectors; data, databases and charts; search applications; resources for investors and money management; and market analysis tools.
Tools for the hackers tool chest.
https://portswigger.net/daily-swig/latest-web-hacking-tools-q4-2020
Latest web hacking tools – Q4 2020
Here’s our roundup of the latest hacking tools for the fourth quarter of 2020:
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