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China’s Cyber Attacks on US and UK: What We Know About the Espionage Campaign

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US, UK and New Zealand of targeting sensitive information with cyber hacking attacks The United States and the United Kingdom have imposed sanctions on individuals and groups accused of participating in a large-scale cyber espionage campaign. The operation, allegedly orchestrated by China’s Ministry of State Security, targeted politicians, journalists, and critics of Beijing. The scope of the cyber attacks was revealed this week, with New Zealand also attributing a separate hacking incident to Chinese-backed cyber actors. Who is Behind the Cyber Attacks? The cyber attacks have been attributed to a hacking group known as Advanced Persistent Threat 31 (APT 31), also referred to as Zirconium, Violet Typhoon, Judgment Panda, and Altaire. This group operates under the Ministry of State Security in Wuhan, China. APT 31 is notorious for high-profile attacks, including a 2020 campaign that targeted campaign staff working for Joe Biden, as well as the 2021 hack of Microsoft Exchange servers, w...

CrowdStrike and Microsoft Respond to Global IT Outage

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  There were long lines at Barcelona airport, as passengers waited to be checked in manually A widespread IT failure has caused significant disruptions worldwide, impacting air travel, banking, healthcare services, and more. Passengers faced lengthy delays and cancellations, as many airlines struggled with manual check-ins due to the outage, which left computers displaying blue error screens. Cybersecurity firm Crowd Strike has confirmed that a recent update to its antivirus software, designed to protect Microsoft Windows devices from cyberattacks, caused the problem. Microsoft has since announced it is taking "mitigation actions" to address the lingering effects of the outage. Here’s what we know so far: What Caused the Outage? The cause of the outage is still being fully investigated. CrowdStrike, known for its antivirus software, revealed that the issue is specific to Windows PCs and was triggered by a defect in a recent software update. CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz conf...

Notable High-Tech Crimes That Didn't Involve Hacking

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  High-Tech Crimes When people think of high-tech crime s, they often picture hackers behind computer screens, infiltrating systems from dark rooms. However, technology can enable many types of crime beyond the digital realm. From genetic cloning to market manipulation, these high-tech crimes illustrate the vast potential for technology to be used in illicit ways. Here are ten notable examples of high-tech crimes that did not involve traditional hacking. Cloning a Giant Sheep Arthur "Jack" Schubarth, an 81-year-old businessman from Montana, was sentenced to six months in federal prison in 2024 for illegally importing a Marco Polo sheep with the aim of cloning it. Schubarth planned to create an even larger hybrid breed to sell to game reserves. Despite his legal team's defense, the U.S. authorities did not look kindly on his attempt to manipulate genetics, leading to his conviction and prison sentence. Crypto Mining at Work In 2021, Christopher Naples, an IT supervisor wit...

U.S. Officials Urge Use of Encrypted Messaging Apps Amid Massive Cyberattack

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  U.S. officials urge Americans U.S. officials are advising Americans to use encrypted messaging apps following an unprecedented cyberattack on major telecommunications companies, including AT&T, Verizon, and Lumen Technologies. This breach, dubbed Salt Typhoon by Microsoft, is one of the largest intelligence compromises in U.S. history, with hackers believed to be linked to China. The attack remains ongoing, and officials have refrained from providing a timeline for when the nation’s telecom systems will be fully secure. The Chinese Embassy in Washington has denied involvement, stating that China opposes all forms of cyberattacks. However, the U.S. government has expressed concerns over China’s cyberespionage activities. On a news call, two senior U.S. cybersecurity officials, including Jeff Greene from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), recommended encrypted communication tools to protect sensitive information from foreign hackers. Greene emphasized ...

US Must Engage with China’s Competitive Hi-Tech Firms: Trade Group Leader

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  computer chip production machine. Semiconductor The head of the US-China Business Council , Craig Allen, has urged that US companies and other multinational firms must engage with China's rapidly growing and "wickedly competitive" tech companies to stay globally competitive. Speaking ahead of his departure from the non-profit industry association, Allen highlighted the challenges that multinational firms face as the US and China continue to tighten trade restrictions and limit technological engagement. According to Allen, Chinese firms, especially private companies, are becoming increasingly competitive as they adapt to slower domestic growth and market oversupply. His warning follows recent export restrictions announced by the Biden administration, including new measures targeting semiconductor development technologies. Allen emphasized that US export controls and China’s countermeasures were pushing Chinese companies to seek new partnerships, often with other Chinese ...

US Plans New Export Control Measures to Curb Chinese Access to Advanced AI Chips

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  advanced semiconductor  The US government is preparing to implement new export control rules aimed at limiting Chinese companies' access to advanced artificial intelligence (AI) chips sourced from third-party countries. Sources familiar with the matter stated that the new regulations, expected to be announced before the end of this month, will focus on controlling the global distribution of powerful graphics processing units (GPUs), which are critical for training AI models. The measure seeks to close loopholes in existing rules, particularly in light of growing concerns over China's efforts to circumvent US sanctions by acquiring restricted chips through intermediary nations. This move represents a significant escalation from earlier chip-related sanctions introduced in December 2024, when the US added 140 Chinese semiconductor firms to a trade blacklist and imposed a ban on the sale of high-bandwidth memory chips to China. The new regulations aim to prevent Chinese compan...

Chinese Surveillance Firm Dahua Exits Xinjiang Projects Amid Controversy

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  Chinese surveillance tech Zhejiang Dahua Technology , a prominent Chinese video surveillance equipment manufacturer, has announced the termination or exit from five projects it had undertaken with local governments in Xinjiang, according to a stock exchange filing made on Monday. These projects, awarded between 2016 and 2017, have been either canceled early or are still in progress, the company confirmed. Dahua plans to cease operations on these projects and handle asset disposal and debt resolution. The move follows a similar decision earlier this month by rival Chinese surveillance giant Hikvision, which also pulled out of contracts with five local governments in Xinjiang. Both companies refrained from offering specific reasons for their withdrawals. Dahua's exit comes after the company, along with several others, was blacklisted by the U.S. in 2019 for alleged involvement in surveillance operations linked to human rights abuses against Uyghur Muslims and other minority groups ...