French Minister Meets With Google, Facebook, Twitter - New York Times
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 Financial Express |
French Minister Meets With Google, Facebook, Twitter
New York Times SAN FRANCISCO — The French interior minister said he asked Google, Facebook and Twitter to work directly with French officials during investigations and to immediately remove terrorist propaganda when authorities alert them to it. "We emphasized that ... France seeks Silicon Valley allies in war on terrorZee News all 112 news articles » |
Yemen’s former president left the capital after Shiite rebels who surrounded his house let him go under international and local pressure, aides close to him said.
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) -- The shooting spree in Copenhagen by a radicalized former gang member has highlighted an overlap between Islamic extremists and the criminal underworld....
 Fox News |
Former Yemen president flees capital after rebels let him go
Fox News April 2, 2013: Yemeni President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi speaks during his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow. (AP). SANAA, Yemen – Yemen's former president left the capital after Shiite ... and more » |
US sending two servicemembers to Marsby The European Union Times
Mars One provided this image of what their future colony on the planet could look like.
A new report says the United States is sending two American servicemembers to Mars, saying they are willing to spend the rest of their lives on the planet.
Stars and Stripes reported on Friday that the servicemembers are a Naval Reserve flight test engineer and an Air National Guard cybertransport specialist.
The servicemembers are among one hundred candidates competing for 24 spots to travel to the planet through Mars One that is a Dutch-based company, according to the report.
Despite all difficulties for living on Mars, the company expressed hope to land four people on the red planet in 2025 in order to establish the first extraterrestrial colony.
The atmosphere on Mars is not breathable and the average temperature is minus 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
The planet, which is on average about 50 million miles from Earth, is not known to have food and water is not easily obtained.
Officials wrote on the Mars One company’s website that a one-way trip to Mars is currently “the only way we can get people on Mars within the next 20 years.”
One of the servicemembers, Lt. Cmdr. Oscar Mathews, who is a test pilot at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md., said he was suitable for the mission.
“If you’re going to go to Mars, you may as well stay on Mars because the whole reason to go to Mars is to do science and to live and to establish a habitat,” Mathews said.
He added that the plan to get humans to Mars by 2025 is “an aggressive schedule but not an impossible schedule.”
The other servicemember was Tech. Sgt. Carmen Paul, who serves with the California Air National Guard.
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 KRDO |
179 Ukrainian soldiers killed in Debaltseve
KRDO The bloody siege of Debaltseve, a Ukrainian town that was finally seized by pro-Russian separatists this week in defiance of a ceasefire agreement, claimed the lives of at least 179 Ukrainian soldiers, a senior official said Saturday. and more » |
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Kaspersky Reveals HDD firmware virus infecting computers since 2001 by The European Union Times
Since 2001, a group of hackers, dubbed the “Equation Group” by researchers from Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab, have infected computers in at least 42 countries (with Iran, Russia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, India, and Syria most infected) with what Ars Technica calls “superhuman technical feats” indicating “extraordinary skill and unlimited resources.”
The exploits, including the ‘prized technique’ of the creation of a secret storage vault that survives military-grade disk wiping and reformatting, cover every hard-drive manufacturer and have many similar characteristics to the infamous NSA-led Stuxnet virus.
According to Kaspersky, the spies made a technological breakthrough by figuring out how to lodge malicious software in the obscure code called firmware that launches every time a computer is turned on.
Disk drive firmware is viewed by spies and cybersecurity experts as the second-most valuable real estate on a PC for a hacker, second only to the BIOS code invoked automatically as a computer boots up.
“The hardware will be able to infect the computer over and over,” lead Kaspersky researcher Costin Raiu said in an interview.
Kaspersky’s reconstructions of the spying programs show that they could work in disk drives sold by more than a dozen companies, comprising essentially the entire market. They include Western Digital Corp, Seagate Technology Plc, Toshiba Corp, IBM, Micron Technology Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd.
The group used a variety of means to spread other spying programs, such as by compromising jihadist websites, infecting USB sticks and CDs, anddeveloping a self-spreading computer worm called Fanny, Kasperky said.
Fanny was like Stuxnet in that it exploited two of the same undisclosed software flaws, known as “zero days,” which strongly suggested collaboration by the authors, Raiu said. He added that it was “quite possible” that the Equation group used Fanny to scout out targets for Stuxnet in Iran and spread the virus.
Which, as Reuters reports, strongly suggests the “extraordinary skills and unlimited resources” were funded by the NSA…
The U.S. National Security Agency has figured out how to hide spying software deep within hard drives made by Western Digital, Seagate, Toshiba and other top manufacturers, giving the agency the means to eavesdrop on the majority of the world’s computers, according to cyber researchers and former operatives.
That long-sought and closely guarded ability was part of a cluster of spying programs discovered by Kaspersky Lab, the Moscow-based security software maker that has exposed a series of Western cyberespionage operations.
Kaspersky said it found personal computers in 30 countries infected with one or more of the spying programs, with the most infections seen in Iran, followed by Russia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, China, Mali, Syria, Yemen and Algeria. The targets included government and military institutions, telecommunication companies, banks, energy companies, nuclear researchers, media, and Islamic activists, Kaspersky said.
The firm declined to publicly name the country behind the spying campaign, but said it was closely linked to Stuxnet, the NSA-led cyberweapon that was used to attack Iran’s uranium enrichment facility. The NSA is the agency responsible for gathering electronic intelligence on behalf of the United States.
A former NSA employee told Reuters that Kaspersky’s analysis was correct, and that people still in the intelligence agency valued these spying programs as highly as Stuxnet. Another former intelligence operative confirmed that the NSA had developed the prized technique of concealing spyware in hard drives, but said he did not know which spy efforts relied on it.
The global coverage is clearly focused in a particular region (and not in the US)…
As Kasperskey exposes, victims generally fall into the following categories:
• Governments and diplomatic institutions
• Telecommunication
• Aerospace
• Energy
• Nuclear research
• Oil and gas
• Military
• Nanotechnology
• Islamic activists and scholars
• Mass media
• Transportation
• Financial institutions
• Companies developing cryptographic technologies
• Governments and diplomatic institutions
• Telecommunication
• Aerospace
• Energy
• Nuclear research
• Oil and gas
• Military
• Nanotechnology
• Islamic activists and scholars
• Mass media
• Transportation
• Financial institutions
• Companies developing cryptographic technologies
As an interesting note, some of the “patients zero” of Stuxnet seem to have been infected by the EQUATION group. It is quite possible that the EQUATION group malware was used to deliver the STUXNET payload.
So far, Kaspersky have identi?ed several malware platforms used exclusively by the Equation group. They are:
EQUATIONDRUG – A very complex attack platform used by the group on its victims. It supports a module plugin system, which can be dynamically uploaded and unloaded by the attackers.
DOUBLEFANTASY – A validator-style Trojan, designed to con?rm the target is the intended one. If the target is con?rmed, they get upgraded to a more sophisticated platform such as EQUATIONDRUG or GRAYFISH.
EQUESTRE – Same as EQUATIONDRUG.
TRIPLEFANTASY – Full-featured backdoor sometimes used in tandem with GRAYFISH. Looks like an upgrade of DOUBLEFANTASY, and is possibly a more recent validator-style plugin.
GRAYFISH – The most sophisticated attack platform from the EQUATION group. It resides completely in the registry, relying on a bootkit to gain execution at OS startup.
FANNY – A computer worm created in 2008 and used to gather information about targets in the Middle East and Asia. Some victims appear to have been upgraded ?rst to DoubleFantasy, and then to the EQUATIONDRUG system. Fanny used exploits for two zero-day vulnerabilities which were later discovered with Stuxnet.
EQUATIONLASER – An early implant from the EQUATION group, used around 2001-2004. Compatible with Windows 95/98, and created sometime between DOUBLEFANTASY and EQUATIONDRUG.
Although the implementation of their malware systems is incredibly complex, surpassing even Regin in sophistication, there is one aspect of the EQUATION group’s attack technologies that exceeds anything Kaspersky has ever seen before.
This is the ability to infect the hard drive firmware.
The plugin version 4 is more complex and can reprogram 12 drive “categories”
So to summarize:
1) US sanctions Russia
2) a Russian-based research group (Kaspersky Lab is an international group operating in almost 200 countries and territories worldwide. The company is headquartered in Moscow, Russia, with its holding company registered in the United Kingdom. Kaspersky Lab currently employs over 2,850 qualified specialists) reveals that through Equation group’s code, there is NSA presence across the supply chain of the highest margin US products .
3) As Reuters notes, the exposure of these new spying tools could lead to greater backlash against Western technology,particularly in countries such as China, which is already drafting regulations that would require most bank technology suppliers to proffer copies of their software code for inspection.
4) And Peter Swire, one of five members of U.S. President Barack Obama’s Review Group on Intelligence and Communications Technology, said the Kaspersky report showed that it is essential for the country to consider the possible impact on trade and diplomatic relations before deciding to use its knowledge of software flaws for intelligence gathering. “There can be serious negative effects on other U.S. interests,” Swire said.
It appears the ‘boomerang’ is boomerang-ing…
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Ukraine, rebels say cease-fire violations persist
Washington Post KIEV, Ukraine — Ukraine's military and Russia-backed separatist rebels are accusing each other of continuing to mount attacks a week after a cease-fire was called. Ukrainian security spokesman Col. Andriy Lysenko said Saturday that one serviceman was ... and more » |
MOSCOW (AP) -- When Alexander was due to finish his year of mandatory military service in October, his commander told him he had no choice: He had to sign a contract to extend his stay in the army and head to southern Russia for troop exercises....
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich, who fled to Russia a year ago after being toppled by months of street protests, said he was ready to return to Ukraine if the opportunity arose.
Azerbaijan Devalues Currency Amid Plunging Oil Pricesby noreply@rferl.org (RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service)
The Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA) has abruptly devalued the country's currency against the dollar and the euro.
Greece and its European creditors have reached a deal over the country's request to extend its bailout, according to officials.
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 Business Insider |
Putin: Russia's military strength is unmatchable
Business Insider putin REUTERS/Sergei Ilnitsky/PoolRussia's President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a ceremony to award World War Two veterans in honor of the upcoming 70th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War at the Kremlin in Moscow, ... |
 RT (blog) |
NATO-Russia jet scrambling hysteria: Who is the real threat?
RT (blog) Meanwhile, the military activity of NATO aircraft on Russia's borders is far more intense. Starting from 2014, the intensity of operations of NATO reconnaissance planes over the territory of the Baltic countries and the Baltic and Barents Seas, all of ... RAF jets scrambled after Russian bombers seen off CornwallBBC News Britain would 'struggle' in a war against Russia, former defence chiefs warnThe Independent Britain 'could not cope' with an attack from Russia, warn ex-military leadersExpress.co.uk Channel 4 News-Telegraph.co.uk-The Week UK all 224 news articles » |
Communiqué must now be approved by all 19 ministers
Moody's downgrades Russia sovereign debt to junk
CNBC Moody's Investors Service downgraded Russia's sovereign debt to junk status on Friday, citing the crisis in Ukraine and the falling price of oil. Moody's cut Russia's rating to Ba1 from Baa3, with a negative outlook. "Russia is expected to experience a ... |
 Аргументы и факты |
За два дня операции по выводу войск из района Дебальцево погибли 15 человек (видео)
СЕГОДНЯ Уточненные данные по Дебальцево озвучили в Генштабе. За два дня операции по выводу войск из района Дебальцево погибли 15 человек и 160 получили ранения. 110 украинских военных с Дебальцевского плацдарма попали в плен к боевикам. Однако представители так называемой ... Люди держатся за ДебальцевоГазета.Ru Стрельба под Дебальцево понемногу стихаетКомсомольская Правда в Украине В Дебальцево прибыли грузовики гуманитарного конвоя из РоссииПервый канал ЛІГА.net Все похожие статьи: 33 » |
 Wall Street Journal |
Moody's Downgrades Russia to Junk Status
Wall Street Journal Moody's believes “the government's financial strength will diminish materially as a result of fiscal pressures and the continued erosion of” Russia's foreign exchange reserves due to capital outflows and restricted access to international capital markets. Russia cut to 'junk' by Moody'sBusiness Insider Russia Gets Second Junk Rating as Moody's Cuts on Ukraine, OilBloomberg Moody's downgrades Russia's sovereign rating to Ba1 from Baa3; outlook negativeMoodys.com (press release) (subscription) The Guardian-Reuters UK-Huffington Post all 71 news articles » |
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 RT |
With Russian Official Said To Head New BRICS Bank, Will Dollars Get Dissed?
Forbes The western world may be at odds with Russian leadership but the emerging markets that make up the BRICS are a-ok. Russian state media reported on Friday that Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov will likely head up the board of governors at the ... Russia ratifies $100bn BRICS New Development BankRT all 11 news articles » |
Obama Calls Chicago's Pullman District a 'Milestone' in US Journey by webdesk@voanews.com (Kane Farabaugh)
President Barack Obama's designation of Chicago's Pullman Historic District as a national monument on Thursday brings legal protections for the area, once regarded as one of the nation's most endangered historic sites. The district's grand Victorian red-brick buildings once housed the machinery and people that were the beating heart of the Pullman Palace Car Co. in the late 1800s and early 1900s. In its heyday, Pullman was the premier manufacturer of luxury rail cars. Pullman Historic Foundation President Michael Shymanski said Chicago was an ideal location for the operation, thanks to the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad. “In the 1860s, Chicago was emerging as the rail hub of the nation,” Shymanski said. Industrialist George Pullman designed the whole town. “The idea behind it was to make a place that was orderly, efficient, and beautiful for the people who wanted to work for the Pullman company and other people who wanted to live here,” Shymanski said. By the 1900s, the district's streets were full of Pullman employees. The Pullman company became one of the largest employers of African-Americans, who worked as porters and staff on Pullman’s sleeper cars. Among those porters was an ancestor to someone close to Obama. A great-granddaughter of one porter “had the chance to go on to a great college and a great law school and had a chance to work for the mayor, and had the chance to climb the ladder of success, and serve as a leader in some of our city’s most important institutions," he said. "And I know this because she is the first lady of the United States of America, Michelle Obama.” The president said his wife’s ancestors also helped organize the first African-American labor union. Union leaders helped launch the civil rights movement of the 20th century, paving his way to the presidency. “It’s a story of labor, civil rights, a story about African-Americans," said U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly, an Illinois Democrat. "I think the confirmation of what this site means made it compelling.” Kelly, who encouraged the president to make Pullman a national monument, said that "he worked in this area when he was a community organizer, and I think this will be a part of his legacy.” But it almost wasn't. The ravages of time and fire prompted the National Trust for Historic Preservation to name Pullman one of the most endangered historic places in the United States. “About 90 percent of the original housing exists, but only less than 10 percent of the original manufacturing buildings exist," Shymanski said. "And that goes to reflect that the housing worked.” Shymanski, who lives in the Pullman Historic District, said making the neighborhood a national monument would help preservation efforts and encourage people to visit the site to understand its role in shaping America. “This place has been a milestone in our journey towards a more perfect union,” Obama said. Though there are many historic locations throughout Chicago, Obama’s designation makes the Pullman Historic District the city's first national monument.
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 Telegraph.co.uk |
Russian tensions could escalate into all-out war, says Nato general
Telegraph.co.uk But Sir Adrian, one of the most senior generals in the British Army and a former director of special forces, went further and said there was also danger that Russia could use conventional forces and Soviet-era brinkmanship to seize Nato territory. Vladimir Putin Says Russia's Military Might Has No MatchNBCNews.com NATO-Russia jet scrambling hysteria: Who is the real threat?RT (blog) Putin: Russia's military strength is unmatchableBusiness Insider Reuters- Daily Mail all 847 news articles » |
Being Greek in the years of the crisis is not only hard: it’s excruciating. Of course, it can’t compare to being Ukrainian or Syrian, or to being from a war-torn country, but it’s still quite bad.
Picket Fence of Super Towers Rises in New Yorkby webdesk@voanews.com (Bernard Shusman)
Prices for high-rise residences in New York City are setting some eye-popping records, reaching as high as $150 million. The buildings are getting taller, too, and the reaction to them from some city residents is becoming more heated. VOA’s Bernard Shusman reports.
Kurdish Fighters Hold Syrian Town With IS on Outskirtsby webdesk@voanews.com (Zana Omer)
Control of the border town Ras al Ayn has changed hands throughout Syria's civil war. Kurdish fighters are now in control, but Islamic State militants are at the door. VOA Kurdish service videojournalist Zana Omer went inside Ras al Ayn and compiled this report, narrated by Elizabeth Arrott.
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 CNBC |
Nato must prepare for Russian Blitzkrieg, warns UK general
CNBC Nato forces must prepare for an overwhelming Blitzkrieg-style assault by Russia on an eastern European member state designed to catch the alliance off guard and snatch territory, the deputy supreme commander of the military alliance has warned. Russian tensions could escalate into all-out war, says Nato generalTelegraph.co.uk The new Cold War: Vladimir Putin issues new threatDaily Mail NATO-Russia jet scrambling hysteria: Who is the real threat?RT (blog) NBCNews.com -Business Insider -Reuters all 828 news articles » |
Russia's debt downgraded to junk by Moody'sby AFP in Washington
Move follows S&P’s downrating as agency predicts Ukraine crisis, falling oil price and rouble plunge will bring further gloom
Moody’s has cut Russia’s debt rating by one notch into “junk” territory, saying the Ukraine crisis and the fall in oil prices and plunging rouble would further undermine Russia’s economy.
Just over one month since its last downgrade of Moscow’s credit rating, Moody’s said Russia “is expected to experience a deep recession in 2015 and a continued contraction in 2016.
Continue reading...Talks Intensify to End US Ports Disputeby webdesk@voanews.com (Jeff Shu)
Marathon talks to end a contract dispute with dockworkers that has tied up 29 U.S. West Coast ports for months continued Friday with a deadline looming. U.S. Labor Secretary Tom Perez, participating in the talks for a fourth day, remained in San Francisco to try to broker a deal to end the standoff, which has disrupted trans-Pacific shipping and threatens to cost the U.S. economy billions of dollars. Media reports say the bargaining has stalled over the issue of binding arbitration. The secretary told dockworkers and their employers that if they could not reach an agreement, he would take the discussion to Washington next week. The idea is that after nine months of talks, a change of scenery — and proximity to elected leaders eager to resolve the economically damaging situation — could help. Forty percent of imported cargo comes into the U.S. through the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach In Southern California. They are the busiest import and export cargo ports in the United States., according to Tom O’Brien, executive director of research for the Center for International Trade and Transportation at California State University at Long Beach. The ports were shut down several times in recent months because of labor disputes, and the backlog this week has extended kilometers into the ocean. “The situation is terrible,” O’Brien said. “More than 30 cargo ships are docked south of the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. The Pacific Maritime Association [representing the port employers] believes the International Longshore and Warehouse Union intended to sabotage and the PMA is unwilling to offer overtime payment, so dockworkers stopped unloading containers in response to the PMA’s action.” Contracts between employers and dockworkers began to expire last July. By October, cargo congestion was felt all along the West Coast. The labor union representing more than 20,000 dockworkers in 29 ports on the U.S. West Coast, including Los Angeles and Long Beach, denies there was any intent to sabotage. “Cargo ships going into the ports are much larger than before, which has posed huge pressure on the labor market, and port infrastructure and equipment, road system, rail transportation and warehouse capacity. At the same time, labor issues have worsened,” said O’Brien . Containers have piled up in the port areas while cargo ships are lining up at sea outside the ports. The delays have caused tremendous losses for the local business and economy. The stalemate also has had ripple effects on restaurant owners, truck drivers and railroad workers who have lost jobs as a result. “It’s horrible right now. They have to do something about it," said Mario, a truck diver from Fresno, California. "I have been stuck at the port for hours. They let us all down if there is no job. They must manage to solve the issue, because if they fail, we would fail, and all of us would fail.” Exporting California’s navel oranges is a $1 billion business. It is peak season, and navel oranges are highly perishable. With negotiations between port management and the Longshoremen’s Union stalled, farmers said their income would go down about 40 percent. Zequn Hu, a Los Angeles toymaker and retailer, said that his company receives 20 to 30 trucks of toys each day. However, he has been receiving only three trucks of toys a day in recent days and had to fire more than 600 temporary employees. He said his business on Valentine’s Day was ruined, and he is not optimistic about the Easter holiday. To avoid the problem, many companies are sending their cargo ships to ports in the south or on the East Coast. O'Brien said he was optimistic about chances of a settlement, noting that the two sides had agreed on several issues. He noted, however, that even if an agreement was reached, it would be a big challenge to move the huge backlog of cargo out of the ports. Some information for this report came from AP.
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Moody's Investors Service has cut Russia's credit rating to junk grade.
Stocks Soar As Greece Reaches Emergency Loan Deal With Eurozone by webdesk@voanews.com (Henry Ridgwell)
Stock markets in the United States hit record highs Friday after Greece and its eurozone creditors agreed in principle on a deal to extend emergency aid to Athens — staving off the threat of imminent bankruptcy. But bigger hurdles lie ahead. VOA's Henry Ridgwell reports.
Egypt acts as middleman for Russia-Libya arms deal
Al-Monitor CAIRO — The Libya dossier has now risen to the top of the priority list of the administration of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, following an increase in the number of kidnappings and the killing of Egyptians at the hands of armed militias affiliated ... and more » |
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