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upstart writes:

Submitted via IRC for Carny

Multiple Chinese Groups Share the Same RTF Weaponizer

During an investigation into a possibly shared RTF[*] weaponizer by Indian and Chinese APT[**] groups, researchers have discovered that multiple Chinese groups have updated the weaponizer to exploit the Microsoft Equation Editor (EE) vulnerability CVE-2018-0798. The same weaponizer had previously delivered exploits for EE vulnerabilities CVE-2017-11882 and CVE-2018-0802.

Researchers at Anomali believe that the earlier weaponizer was favored because the two vulnerabilities initially employed are easier to exploit than that used with the latter weaponizer. The CVE-2018-0798 vulnerability, however, has the advantage of affecting all versions of EE. The earliest sample of an RTF file with this vulnerability exploited in the wild dates back to October 2018.

Weaponizers are scripts used to inject a malicious RTF object into a pre-crafted RTF phishing document. Anomali has been investigating whether multiple groups are using the same supply chain for their weaponizer. A weaponizer can be recognized through shared object dimensions across weaponized exploits within the delivered RTF files. The actor can be recognized through different post-exploitation behaviors.

Anomali has detected numerous Chinese actors sharing the same new RTF weaponizer, which they all updated at around the same time. These include Goblin Panda (aka Conimes), KeyBoy (aka APT 23), Emissary Panda (aka APT27), Rancor Group, and Temp.Trident (aka Icefog).

[...] The conclusions from Anomali's research confirm that there is a strong sharing culture among Chinese groups. The first weaponizer was used exclusively by Chinese state actors for about a year before it began to be used by cybercriminals. The second weaponizer was used by the state actors for around six months before it too began to be used by cybercriminals. It's not clear whether a state actor developed the weaponizer and shared it with other groups, or whether it was developed by a third-party and supplied to the actors.

[*] RTF(Rich Text Format) is usually a safer document format. Not anymore. Maybe we should all switch to Markdown.

[**] APT: Advanced Persistent Threat

Original Submission

upstart writes:

Submitted via IRC for SoyCow4463

House lawmakers officially ask Facebook to put Libra cryptocurrency project on hold

House Democrats are requesting Facebook halt development of its proposed cryptocurrency project Libra, as well as its digital wallet Calibra, until Congress and regulators have time to investigate the possible risks it poses to the global financial system.

Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), the chairwoman of the House Financial Services Committee, hinted at a move like this last month shortly after the project was announced. Waters's letter today, sent to Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg, and Calibra CEO David Marcus, formalizes that request from a few weeks ago. Aside from Waters, the letter is signed by House Finance's subcommittee leaders.

"If products and services like these are left improperly regulated and without sufficient oversight, they could pose systemic risks that endanger U.S. and global financial stability," Water writes. "These vulnerabilities could be exploited and obscured by bad actors, as other cryptocurrencies, exchanges, and wallets have been in the past."

"[Libra] could pose systemic risks that endanger US and global financial stability."

[...] "We look forward to working with lawmakers as this process moves forward, including answering their questions at the upcoming House Financial Services Committee hearing," a Facebook spokesperson told The Verge Tuesday.

Original Submission

takyon writes:

LightSail 2 Sends Back 1st Signals from Its Solar-Surfing Test Flight

The space advocacy organization The Planetary Society recently confirmed that its LightSail 2 spacecraft has sent its first signals home from space.

The roughly 11-lb. (5 kilograms) cubesat is designed to prove that solar sailing is a feasible way of keeping satellites moving. Fuel is a costly and heavy commodity, and if LightSail 2 can prove that the solar-powered technique works well, perhaps future missions into the deep reaches of the solar system and beyond can be propelled by the charged particles released by the sun.

The project launched into space last week (June 25) from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy megarocket. On Tuesday (July 2), the bread-loaf-size LightSail 2 experiment left Prox-1, its carrier vehicle. LightSail 2 will ultimately open up its ultrathin four-panel sail to achieve a surface area about the size of a boxing ring.

[...] Once the cubesat deploys its solar sail early next week, the rays from the sun will give LightSail 2 a gentle push. The goal is to observe LightSail 2 over the course of a month to see if it shifts in its orbit by a measurable amount, according to The Planetary Society officials. That will help demonstrate that solar sailing is an effective satellite-propulsion technique.

In other news, 'Oumuamua is not an alien light sail, probably.

See also: What's the Difference between LightSail 1 and LightSail 2?
First Contact! LightSail 2 Phones Home to Mission Control
See the Latest Data from LightSail 2 on Our New Mission Control Dashboard (here)

Previously: Planetary Society's "LightSail" Solar Sail Test Launch on May 20
Lightsail Update: Back in Communication
Planetary Society's LightSail Has Finally Deployed After Multiple Setbacks
One Legacy of Carl Sagan May Take Flight Next Week—a Working Solar Sail
Falcon Heavy to Launch STP-2; 4-Hour Window Opens @ 2019-06-25 2:30am EDT (2019-06-25 0630 UTC)

Original Submission

upstart writes:

Submitted via IRC for Bytram

Streaming is secretly fixing your mainstream taste in garbage music

The world's most-streamed artists are a parade of major-label household names: Ariana Grande, Post Malone, Billie Eilish. But hidden below the top rankings, independent artists and labels are taking over a greater share of the music channeling into your headphones.

Why? Music-streaming services like Spotify, Apple Music and Pandora -- and the quirks of how they funnel music you may never have heard otherwise -- are helping fuel an indie golden age just below the surface.

"If there's one thing that streaming has done for sure, it's created a new independent music industry," said Jorge Brea, founder and CEO of Symphonic Distribution, an independent music company in Tampa, Florida, that's distributed music by Waka Flocka Flame and Deadmau5 in his early days.

The meteoric popularity of streaming has lifted fortunes across the recording industry. But streaming also has been quietly shoring up the indie sector that exists outside the big three major labels. By nudging people to listen to a wider variety of artists, the services are helping more listeners stumble on music outside the mainstream. And by reconceptualizing how we pay for music, the services are helping indie artists and labels bask in streaming's glow.

upstart writes:

Submitted via IRC for Bytram

Microsoft tells FTC Repair poses a Cyber Risk. It doesn't.

In comments submitted to the Federal Trade Commission, Microsoft Corp. is arguing that repairing its devices could jeopardize the cyber security of Trusted Platform Module (TPM) security chip. Don’t believe them.

The argument comes in an unsigned letter to the FTC from Microsoft and dated May 31st. The statement was submitted ahead of Nixing the Fix, an FTC workshop on repair restrictions that is scheduled for mid-July.

Microsoft was one of a number of companies that submitted comments to the Commission critical of so-called “right to repair” efforts at the state level to legally mandate that manufacturers make diagnostic information, tools and replacement parts available to owners and independent repair professionals.

The Redmond, Washington company, which makes a wide range of electronic devices ranging from X-Box gaming systems to Surface laptops said that repair poses a threat to the security of its devices.

“The unauthorized repair and replacement of device components can result in the disabling of key hardware security features or can impede the update of firmware that is important to device security or system integrity,” Microsoft wrote.

Specifically, Microsoft suggests that unscrupulous independent repair technicians with access to its devices could disable the Trusted Platform Module or other security protections.

“If the TPM or other hardware or software protections were compromised by a malicious or unqualified repair vendor, those security protections would be rendered ineffective and consumers' data and control of the device would be at risk,” the company wrote. “Moreover, a security breach of one device can potentially compromise the security of a platform or other devices connected to the network.”

Original Submission

martyb writes:

On July 5th of 2014, SoylentNews was officially given approvals for its letters of incorporation as a Public Benefit Corporation.

This is a good opportunity to take stock of where we are. Read on past the fold for coverage of:

• Fundraising
• Site activity
• Folding@Home
• Journals of Spam Accounts
• Submit Stories
• Thank YOU

upstart writes:

Submitted via IRC for SoyCow4463

YouTube's 'instructional hacking' ban threatens computer security teachers

Earlier this year, YouTube added hacking and phishing tutorials to its examples of banned video content — and that ban has been publicized thanks to an apparent crackdown on an ethical "white hat" hacking and computer security channel.

Kody Kinzie is a co-founder of Hacker Interchange, which describes itself as an organization dedicated to teaching beginners about computer science and security. Hacker Interchange produces the Cyber Weapons Lab series on YouTube, but yesterday, Kinzie reported that they were unable to upload new videos because of a content strike. "Our existing content is being flagged and pulled, just got a strike too," noted Kinzie.

We made a video about launching fireworks over Wi-Fi for the 4th of July only to find out @YouTube gave us a strike because we teach about hacking, so we can't upload it.

YouTube now bans: "Instructional hacking and phishing: Showing users how to bypass secure computer systems"

— Kody (@KodyKinzie) July 2, 2019

The rule is laid out on YouTube's "harmful or dangerous content" page, which bans "instructional hacking and phishing," i.e. "showing users how to bypass secure computer systems or steal user credentials and personal data." As Kinzieandothers on Twitter pointed out, even if that could stop some illegal behavior, it's potentially terrible news for anybody studying computer security — as well as people interested in countering hacking and phishing tricks. Hacking techniques are often used illegally, but they're not necessarily illegal. They're practiced by many legitimate researchers and computer system testers. YouTube has a similar ban for teaching theft techniques, but that's a much less popular (and expansive) pastime than learning about computers.

YouTube says the rule isn't new

Original Submission

RandomFactor writes:

Nuclear reactors are seen emotionally as risky due to a few major accidents, but new technologies are coming which will potentially reduce the risks associated with it dramatically.

Commercial reactors have used the same fuel for decades: small pellets of uranium dioxide stacked inside long cylindrical rods made of a zirconium alloy. Zirconium allows the neutrons generated from fission in the pellets to readily pass among the many rods submerged in water inside a reactor core, supporting a self-sustaining, heat-producing nuclear reaction.

Trouble is, if the zirconium overheats, it can react with water and produce hydrogen, which can explode.

To reduce this risk,

[m]anufacturers such as Westinghouse Electric Company and Framatome are hastening development of so-called accident-tolerant fuels that are less likely to overheat—and if they do, will produce very little or no hydrogen. In some of the variations, the zirconium cladding is coated to minimize reactions. In others, zirconium and even the uranium dioxide are replaced with different materials. The new configurations could be slipped into existing reactors with little modification, so they could be phased in during the 2020s.

Core testing of some of these options is already underway and would have to be successful and regulatory hurdles overcome. Additionally, some of the options actually improve efficiency (and consequently cost-effectiveness) of plants. Sadly, 'Too cheap to meter' remains well off the table.

Modern plants, such as are being deployed by Russia both at home and abroad, now include

“passive” safety systems that can squelch overheating even if electrical power at the plant is lost and coolant cannot be actively circulated. Westinghouse and other companies have incorporated passive safety features into their updated designs as well.

takyon writes:

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company victim of fake news: NVIDIA deal to produce next-generation GPUs still on

Update: Nvidia VP Says Next-Gen GPUs Will Be Made by TSMC and Samsung

Previous reports that Samsung would produce Nvidia's upcoming Ampere GPUs were incorrect.

Nvidia's Ampere not to be confused with the other Ampere.

Previously: Samsung Undercuts TSMC, to Fab Nvidia Ampere on Its 7nm Process - Report

Original Submission

taylorvich writes:

A Raging TB Epidemic in Papua New Guinea Threatens to Destabilize the Entire Asia Pacific:

In Papua New Guinea, a TB epidemic threatens to turn into a disaster that could destabilize the Asia Pacific region. Situated about 90 miles from Australia in the Pacific Ocean, the island nation sees more than 100 cases of TB every day.

Of these cases, five are drug-resistant strains, and 10 people will die, according to World Health Organization figures. Yet, in a nation where more than one-third of the population is illiterate, these figures grossly underestimate the actual number of TB cases due to underreporting. Additionally, 86% of the country’s 8 million citizens live in rural areas with little or no access to health care, further obscuring the numbers.

The government now faces a herculean task to battle the epidemic that has plagued the country. It shares the island with the separate nation of Papua, Indonesia's easternmost province, which faces a similar struggle against TB. And Australia, a close neighbor, also has cause for concern: The bacterial disease that attacks the lungs is highly contagious, expensive to treat and is rapidly developing a resistance to drugs.

The country offers a grim textbook case of how education and infrastructure impact health care: The government has neither the finances nor the resources to tackle TB as an increasingly insurmountable health crisis.

[...] According to the WHO, 10 million new TB cases appeared globally in 2017 alone (though TB rates have fallen worldwide). That same year, it killed 1.6 million people, making TB the world’s deadliest infectious disease. And places like Papua New Guinea are seeing an uptick in infection rates — particularly in multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB) and the even more feared drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB)

This grim trend is exportable to neighboring countries.

takyon writes:

The cassette player finally goes Bluetooth

This month marks the 40th anniversary of Sony's first Walkman, the portable music player that would forever change the way we consume music. And while the audio cassette long ago fell out of favor for the CD and later digital music, the format's certainly not forgotten. It may not have the same audiophile cache as the vinyl LP, but a a small and passionate contingent of music listeners are keeping the fire burning.

NINM Lab's latest project occupies that same sort of fuzzy technological limbo as past products like the I'm Fine single use camera. It's also got a name to match: It's OK. In this age of political unrest and global disasters, maybe that's exactly the message we need right now. As for a bluetooth cassette player, it's probably true that nobody needs such a thing, hyper specific products are one of the nice byproducts of late capitalism.

A Bluetooth 5.0 cassette player? Aight.

Original Submission

RandomFactor writes:

Atoms emit light at precise energies determined by the orbits of their electrons. University of Chicago researchers have succeeded in 'shaking' electrons, creating "dopplegangers" at new energies, "a breakthrough that lets scientists create hybrid particles which are part-atom and part-light, with a wide variety of new behaviors.

"In order to make photons collide with one another, we use atoms as a go-between," said postdoctoral researcher Logan Clark, who led the research. "But we were running into a problem because the photons only interact with atoms whose electronic orbitals are at very particular energies. So we asked: What if we could make copies of the orbitals at whatever energies we wanted?"

And that's exactly what they did

By varying the intensity of a laser field tuned precisely to an atomic resonance, the team was able to shift the orbitals of an electron. Shaking the orbitals by periodically varying this intensity produced the desired copies.

While the dopplegangers appear at multiple energies, they remain bound to the original. Still, by

allowing photons to interact with these shaken atoms, the team has created what they call "Floquet polaritons"—quasi-particles which are part-light and part-atom, and unlike regular photons, interact with each other quite strongly. These interactions are essential for making matter from light. Making polaritons with shaken atoms can give the polaritons much more flexibility to move around and collide with each other in new ways.

"Floquet polaritons are full of surprises; we're still continuing to understand them better," [postdoctoral researcher Logan Clark, who led the research] said. "Our next order of business, though, will be to use these colliding photons to make topological 'fluids' of light. It is a tremendously exciting time."

Shaken atoms could also cause a stir in other areas, for example in optical frequency conversion, which is necessary for securing quantum communications.

Journal Reference
Logan W. Clark et al. Interacting Floquet polaritons^[$], Nature (2019). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-019-1354-5

Original Submission

jas writes:

Developers: How PINE64 is creating a community to compete with Raspberry Pi's

One of the consequences of the explosive popularity of the Raspberry Pi is the flourishing of competing ecosystems of single-board computers (SBCs). Aside from the accessibility a $35 price tag offers, the foremost benefit of the Raspberry Pi is the community—the proliferation of projects and integrations that center around the Raspberry Pi, and the ease-of-use that creates, makes competing products that look better on spec sheets a disappointment when taken out of the box.

PINE64 has attempted to head this off by fostering an involved community; the PINE64 website explains their philosophy as "the community gets to actively shape the devices, as well as the social platform, of PINE64 from the ground up. The goal is to deliver ARM64 devices that you really wish to engage with and a platform that you want to be a part of." The first-generation Pinebook was available in an 11.6" or 14" configuration, with a quad-core Allwinner A64, 2GB RAM, 16GB eMMC, and 1366x768 display for $99, beating Nicolas Negroponte's OLPC XO-1, a decade after that project sputtered.

PINE64 is differentiating itself by building not just SBCs, but notebooks, tablets, and phones with community input and feedback. Ahead of the release of the Pinebook Pro this summer, a Rockchip RK3399-based ARM laptop with 4GB LPDDR4 RAM, 64GB eMMC, and a 14" 1080p display, TechRepublic interviewed PINE64 community manager Lukasz Erecinski about the Pinebook Pro, and the PINE64 community philosophy.

Previously: Kickstarter: Pine A64, Cheaper and More Powerful than Raspberry Pi 2 Model B
PinePhone Linux Smartphone Priced at $149 to Arrive This Year
Pinebook Pro Update: The $199 Linux Laptop is Almost Ready to Go

Original Submission

GreatAuntAnesthesia writes:

As a fan of the Elite series (although I don't dare start playing Elite: Dangerous) I was drawn to this story, but wasn't expecting to be moved quite as much as I was. Well worth a read.

https://www.theguardian.com/games/2019/jul/04/how-a-video-game-community-filled-my-nephews-final-days-with-happiness-elite-dangerous

Original Submission

An Anonymous Coward writes:

https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/mad-magazine-stop-publishing-issues-content-fall/story?id=64126360

The publication was founded in 1952 by editor Harvey Kurtzman and publisher William Gaines, but it was Al Feldstein, who took over for Kurtzman and led the magazine for almost 30 years, who brought the outlet to national -- and international -- prominence, especially in the 1970s.

It peaked at 2.8 million subscribers in 1973, but had just 140,000 left as of 2017.

As news of the magazine's closure trickled across the internet, several contributors eulogized the publication. David DeGrand, a writer and artist who contributed to the magazine, was one of the first to confirm on Twitter the magazine was ending as rumors began to grow.

Original Submission