“Iran, one of the countries most strongly identified with the rise cyber terrorism and malicious hacking, appears now to be using an iron fist to turn on its own,” reports TechCrunch: The country has reportedly shut down nearly all internet access in the country in retaliation to escalating protests that were originally ignited by a rise in fuel prices, according to…
Tag: Terrorism
Twitter Says It Will Restrict Users From Retweeting World Leaders Who Break Its Rules
The social media giant said it will not allow users to like, reply, share or retweet tweets from world leaders who break its rules. Instead, it will let users quote-tweet to allow ordinary users to express their opinions. The company said the move will help its users stay informed about global affairs, but while balancing the need to keep the site’s…
G7 Taskforce Warns Global Crytocurrencies Like Libra Pose Risks, May Not Be Approved
“Stablecoin” cryptocurrencies like Libra pose a risk to the global financial system, warns a new report by the G7 group of nations. An anonymous reader quotes the BBC: The G7 taskforce that produced the report includes senior officials from central banks, the International Monetary Fund and the Financial Stability Board, which coordinates rules for the G20 economies. It says backers of…
Attorney General Bill Barr Will Ask Zuckerberg To Halt Plans For End-To-End Encryption Across Facebook’s Apps
Attorney General Bill Barr, along with officials from the United Kingdom and Australia, is set to publish an open letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg asking the company to delay plans for end-to-end encryption across its messaging services until it can guarantee the added privacy does not reduce public safety. From a report: A draft of the letter, dated Oct. 4,…
Iraq Shuts Down Internet Access As Mass Protests Turn Violent
dryriver shares a report from Euronews: Iraq’s government shut off internet access, imposed curfews and deployed elite forces to secure key facilities on Wednesday amid widespread protests aimed at toppling the country’s regime. Five people were killed and more than 200 were wounded in the largest display of public anger against Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi’s year-old government. Domestic instability could…
Facebook and WhatsApp Will Be Forced to Share Encrypted Messages With British Police
“Social media platforms based in the U.S. including Facebook and WhatsApp will be forced to share users’ encrypted messages with British police under a new treaty between the two countries, ” reports Bloomberg, citing “a person familiar with the matter.” The accord, which is set to be signed by next month, will compel social media firms to share information to support…
South Africa, UK Acknowledge Mass Surveillance By Tapping Undersea Internet Cables
The South African government has been conducting mass surveillance on all communications in the country, reports Reclaim the Net:, citing a report from Privacy International as well as recently-revealed affidavits and other documents from former State Security Agency (SSA) director-general Arthur Fraser:
Interestingly, the mass surveillance has been happening since 2008… The surveillance was supposedly designed to cover information about organized crime…
Trump Launches Space Command
President Donald Trump announced Thursday the official establishment of the U.S. military’s Space Command. CNN reports: Space Command will become the 11th combatant command, joining the ranks of U.S. Central Command, which oversees operations in the Middle East, and U.S. Special Operations Command, which oversees Special Operations Forces. The command will initially consist of just 287 personnel and its final location…
China’s Tech Giants Have a Second Job: Helping Beijing Spy on Its People
Tencent and Alibaba are among the firms that assist authorities in hunting down criminal suspects, silencing dissent and creating surveillance cities. From a report: Alibaba Group’s sprawling campus has collegial workspaces, laid-back coffee bars and, on the landscaped grounds, a police outpost. Employees use the office to report suspected crimes to the police, according to people familiar with the operation. Police…
The Pentagon Has a Laser That Can Identify People From a Distance By Their Heartbeat
An anonymous reader quotes a report from MIT Technology Review: A new device, developed for the Pentagon after U.S. Special Forces requested it, can identify people without seeing their face: instead it detects their unique cardiac signature with an infrared laser. While it works at 200 meters (219 yards), longer distances could be possible with a better laser. “I don’t want…