Jeffrey J. Bloom

Jeffrey J. Bloom

A passenger named their hotspot "Jihadi Cell London 1." If a passenger raises an alarm about an issue that could jeopardize the safety of those onboard & no one owns up to it, I can understand cancelling the flight on the grounds of "passenger safety."
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/jihadi-london-wi-fi-hotspot-thomson-airways-london-gatwick-flight-a7756886.html

Jeffrey J. Bloom

Durkheim Project's algorithm are 65% accurate or better at inferring which cohort a patient was from based on clinical notes. "Our data therefore suggests that computerized text analytics can be applied to unstructured medical records to estimate the risk of suicide," according to the study. "The resulting system could allow clinicians to potentially screen seemingly healthy patients at the primary care level & continuously evaluate the suicide risk among psychiatric patients."
https://www.designnews.com/content/predictive-maintenance-people-using-ai-prevent-suicide/38556687956829/

Jeffrey J. Bloom

AI expert Kai-Fu Lee talks about issues raised in HBO's Westworld, about a futuristic theme park hosted by robots, where human visitors pay to live out their fantasies. Lee is a famous venture capitalist in China and a former Microsoft & Google executive. He has an undergrad degree in computer science from Columbia and PhD from Carnegie Mellon University, where he did pioneering work on machine learning & speech recognition.
https://qz.com/991870/whats-actually-scary-about-westworld-according-to-an-ai-expert/

Jeffrey J. Bloom

*Hacked data was published to cyber-berkut; some was genuine & original, while other data was altered to discredit authors--a process called "leak tainting."
*When UoT investigators studied the URL shortener (tiny.cc) used by hackers, they found ~4,000 addresses created all together & all leading to a convincing--but fake--Gmail password change page.
http://globalnews.ca/news/3478141/russian-cyberattacks-targeted-39-countries-and-combined-hacking-forgery-disinformation-report/

Jeffrey J. Bloom

Facebook, Amazon & over two dozen more tech companies pressed Congress to make changes to a broad internet surveillance law--necessary to improve privacy & increase government transparency. Marking Silicon Valley's first significant public effort to wade into a contentious debate. Of particular concern is Section 702, allowing intelligence agencies to vacuum up vast amounts of communications from foreigners but also incidentally collects some data belonging to Americans that can be searched by analysts without a warrant.
https://yro.slashdot.org/story/17/05/26/1634252/major-us-tech-firms-press-congress-for-internet-surveillance-reforms

Jeffrey J. Bloom

Remember when specially crafted filenames could crash Windows?!? Well, they're still around & effect Windows Vista, 7 & 8.1!
*Using filenames to reference TWO special devices like "c:\con\con" ("con" = console = keyboard/screen), would crash Windows. If linked from a webpage (i.e. loading an image from file:///c:/con/con) the machine would crash.
*The new bug uses special filename $MFT (special metadata files used by NTFS) & if used as a directory name (i.e. opening c:\$MFT\123), NTFS locks & never releases the file!
https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/05/in-a-throwback-to-the-90s-ntfs-bug-lets-anyone-hang-or-crash-windows-7-8-1/

Jeffrey J. Bloom

When the public was told Spain blew up the Maine, or Vietnam returned fire, or Iraq stockpiled weapons, or Libya was planning a massacre, the claims were straightforward & disprovable(?). Society is increasingly ignoring empirical evidence, for example: There's as much evidence showing Seth Rich (murdered DNC staffer) leaked emails vs. the Russian's stole them. Yet, both claims have passionate believers!
"Still, the claims about Russia are unique in their wide proliferation, broad acceptance & status as something to be constantly referred to as though already established, constantly augmented by other Russia-related stories that add nothing to the central claim. This phenomenon, in my view, is as dangerous as any lies & fabrications coming out of the racist right."
https://consortiumnews.com/2017/05/26/believing-the-russian-hacking-claim/

Jeffrey J. Bloom

On at least two occasions, the FBI shared raw FISA data w/private contractors, for "analytical purposes," & the government acknowledged it's "investigating whether there have been similar cases in which the FBI improperly afforded non-FBI personnel access to raw FISA-acquired information on FBI systems."
http://theweek.com/speedreads/701630/fisa-court-chided-fbi-sharing-nsa-data-americans-outside-contractors

Jeffrey J. Bloom

Cloak & Dagger enables remote control of any device running up to Android v7.1.2.
*The attack abuses legitimate app permissions via "Draw On Top" & "A11y"--designed for visually impaired.
*Once installed, the malicious app allows silent: keystroke recording, app installs, device unlock, etc--all w/o waking screen!
*It's not going to be easy for Google to protect users against this type of attack, as "changing a feature is not like fixing a bug."
http://www.express.co.uk/life-style/science-technology/809663/Android-Device-Warning-Cloak-and-Dagger-Malware

Jeffrey J. Bloom

"..the best reception at Cannes thus far." I hope this heist thriller, Good Time, lives up to the hype & more importantly, shows Pattinson's acting abilities beyond the rigid Edward of Twilight. 😉
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/cannes-robert-pattinsons-good-time-premiere-standing-ovation-1007637

Jeffrey J. Bloom

The Russian Quantum Center said it secures the blockchain by combining quantum key distribution (QKD) with post-quantum cryptography, making it essentially "un-hackable." The technology creates special blocks that are signed by quantum keys generated by a QKD network.

Steve Conway: "Efforts like [this] are underway around the world. It’s difficult to assess this one in comparison with any other without having any technical details about what they’re doing."

Addison Snell: "It is still early in the development of quantum computing & difficult to compare the efficacy of the Russians’ approach versus efforts we have seen from companies like D-Wave & IBM."

Google appears to be at the forefront of this work – the company’s quantum-AI team has set for itself the goal of making a quantum annealer with 100 qubits by the end of this year.

"It’s interesting because the challenges with creating a quantum computer increase dramatically with the number of qubits," said Conway. "It’s a whole lot easier to do something with a couple of qubits than it is with hundreds or thousands of qubits. But in fact if you want to get serious about this you have to get to the thousands of qubits.. I’d be surprised if this were in the thousands of qubits range, which is what you’d really need for serious cybersecurity."
https://www.hpcwire.com/2017/05/25/russian-researchers-claim-first-quantum-safe-blockchain/

Jeffrey J. Bloom

Well over half of millennials (aged 18-34) -- 60% -- are either using someone someone else's password or giving their password to someone else. And just under half -- 48% -- of non-millennials are doing the same.

Jeffrey J. Bloom

New tech always destroyed jobs, but creates new ones, as it makes previously expensive items cheap enough to increase demand. AI makes the unthinkable possible, & if used properly, can lead to prosperity! Tim O’Reilly delves into the history of past technological transitions, speculates on future possibilities of AI & shares thoughts about choosing to govern our creations right. (Keynote highlight, Strata Data Conference in London 2017)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yWLDLG_xW8

Jeffrey J. Bloom

"..emerging as a national powerhouse in the machine-learning AI sphere," Austin’s top entrepreneurs are offering one AI startup a $100k investment & chance to join startup accelerator "Capital Factory," Austin’s center of gravity for entrepreneurs. Any startup focused on AI may apply on Angel List to pitch at their July 28th funding day.
https://austinstartups.com/five-cutting-edge-ai-startups-get-the-chance-to-pitch-for-100-000-from-austins-top-angel-e1af68ce650c

Jeffrey J. Bloom

"NSA has been doing massive amounts of spying, surveilling, capturing every keystroke[...]without telling the FISA court.." It's a "profound violation of the Fourth Amendment," that started under Bush, expanded under Obama & now continues--albeit crippled--under Trump.
http://insider.foxnews.com/2017/05/25/judge-napolitano-lack-outrage-over-obama-era-nsa-illegal-searches-astounding

Jeffrey J. Bloom

Increase AI responsiveness & user privacy at the same time? Yes! Sensory & ARM are bringing cloud-free AI to the edge, shifting ALL processing to client devices! However, if you're lonely w/o Skynet, there'll be options for cloud-based AI access--for a quicker, smarter & better overall user experience.
http://www.crossroadstoday.com/story/35520050/sensory-and-arm-processors-enabling-ai-at-the-edge

Jeffrey J. Bloom

Amended to require FBI notification (of victim actions) & an exception allowing destruction of victim data on attackers machine, the "Active Cyber Defense Certainty Act" would allow cybercrime victims to use active defense to stop attacks & ID attackers.. Yeah, there's no way this would ever be abused!
https://m.slashdot.org/story/326693

Jeffrey J. Bloom

Validian protects apps & data within virtual closed systems on all devices, operating systems & platforms. Validian-enabled environments are immune to attacks via zero-day vulnerabilities (on any OS or other means), immune to the ransomware attack itself & immune to any & all known & unknown cyber-attacks.
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/validian-protects-against-latest-ransomware--zero-day-vulnerability-attacks-624034394.html

Jeffrey J. Bloom

I wouldn't want the Awan brothers working for me.. Accused of stealing equipment from members’ offices & committing serious violations on the House IT network (like linking staffers’ iPhones to a single, non-sanctioned iTunes account), it's scary to think they had access to every email & file of members who employed them.
http://www.redstate.com/slee/2017/05/24/non-russian-hacking-news-former-staffers-blackmailing-congressional-members/

Jeffrey J. Bloom

Organizers at the DEF CON hacking conference in July are planning a mass cracking of US electronic election machines.

The event, which for over 20 years has attracted the best and the brightest in the hacking community, will see a group hackathon against the voting machines that are used in every US election these days. The purpose is to check whether the machinery that underpins the electoral system is up to scratch.

"Pretty much, just like everything else, it's time for hackers to come in and tell you what's possible and what's not," DEF CON founder Jeff Moss told Politico. "We're only going to play with them for a couple of days, but bad guys can play with them for weeks or years."

Jeffrey J. Bloom

Executive advice: Spend money upgrading home security systems to stay safe from "evil system hackers"--Phreakers; Script Kiddies; Hacktivists; Black, White & Grey Hats!! They may not do serious physical harm--like Burglars--, but they can compromise your finances, personal data & identity!!
https://www.cso.com.au/article/619748/home-security-system-hacking-everything-need-know/

Jeffrey J. Bloom

Who was the real Target & was this attack simply a distraction? North Korea's Lazarus group is known for conducting extensive research on targets before striking. Does WannaCry--exhibiting elements of Lazarus--indicate a change in tactics? Symantec says "We now see them for one reason or another indulging in common cyber crime."
https://www.thestreet.com/story/14147814/1/how-hackers-changed-their-style-in-the-wanna-cry-attacks.html

Jeffrey J. Bloom

Target has reached an agreement to settle a multi-state investigation into a 2013 data breach that affected the payment information of more than 41 million customer payment accounts — one of the biggest hacking attacks in U.S. history.

As part of the settlement, Target promised a revamp of its data security practices, and agreed to pay $18.5 million to a number of state attorneys general.

“Today’s settlement with Target establishes industry standards for companies that process payment cards and maintain secure information about their customers,” said Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan. “People must remain vigilant about activity on their credit and debit cards as it's not a matter of if but when you are going to be a victim of identity theft or a security breach.”

Jeffrey J. Bloom

More than 5 percent, or one out of every 20 searches seeking upstream Internet data on Americans inside the NSA’s so-called Section 702 database violated the safeguards Obama and his intelligence chiefs vowed to follow in 2011, according to one classified internal report reviewed by Circa.

The Obama administration self-disclosed the problems at a closed-door hearing Oct. 26 before the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court that set off alarm. Trump was elected less than two weeks later.

Jeffrey J. Bloom

“I have, unfortunately, a grudging respect for Russian intelligence capabilities, their aggressiveness, their pervasiveness and their determination to do what they can do undermine this country’s democracy and democratic institutions,” Brennan said.

Jeffrey J. Bloom

OceanLotus Group (APT32) is known for sophisticated attacks of companies, governments, journalists & activists alike. With activity NOW tracked back to 2012, APT32 continues to target intellectual property & confidential business info--tracking specific projects over time.
https://www.wired.com/2017/05/close-look-notorious-apt32-hacking-group-action/

Jeffrey J. Bloom

Checkpoint has discovered a new vulnerability in numerous media players allowing hackers to take full control of ANY device using malicious subtitle files. An estimates 200 million people are potentially at risk.
http://gizmodo.com/subtitles-open-you-up-to-hackers-when-using-popular-med-1795493495

Jeffrey J. Bloom

"We have a special mechanism of alerting each other to cyberattacks and if the U.S. has apprehensions about a cyber threat of some kind that’s coming out of Russia, then a mechanism of data exchange gets into action," she said.

"The same system applies to us, too, but the U.S. didn’t enact it virtually a single time," Zakharova said.

Jeffrey J. Bloom

"It’s time for hackers to come in & tell you what’s possible & what’s not." DEFCON organizers are in early stages of planning, locating used voting machines & anticipating dismissal of any successes by the companies. "voluntary voting system standard addresses air humidity & shock resistance, not security." Vendors blatantly misrepresent specifications & properties of equipment they sell.
http://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/23/defcon-hacker-conference-voting-machines-238734

Jeffrey J. Bloom

German hacking team Chaos Computer Club says S8 iris scanner can be fooled using printed picture of owner's eye covered with a contact lens mimicking eyeball's curvature. "If you value the data on your phone," using "pin-protection is a safer approach than using biometrics for authentication." "The security risk to the user from iris recognition is even bigger than with fingerprints, as we expose our irises a lot.
http://www.mirror.co.uk/tech/samsung-galaxy-s8-hacked-tricksters-10488353