As is the case with many types of cybersecurity threats, shielding one’s company from ransomware attacks calls for measures that simultaneously build the strongest protections possible while also adopting mitigation strategies that assume those measures will fail.
On February 14, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it had entered into a settlement with BlockFi Lending LLC, a subsidiary of BlockFi Inc., (collectively BlockFi) over first-of-its-kind charges that BlockFi had failed to register the offers and sales of its retail crypto lending product, BlockFi Interest Accounts (BIAs), and that BlockFi had violated the registration provisions of the Investment Company Act of 1940. The charges and resulting settlement not only provide a path forward for BlockFi, but also provide clearer guidance to all players in the retail crypto market and especially those involved with crypto lending platforms.
Apple’s portal to the metaverse could be nearing, Sony’s AI ups its game(play), a hospital resorts to pen and paper to thwart ransomware, and more in this week’s News of Note!
The actors behind ransomware tend to fall into two categories: cybercriminal gangs, often based in Eastern Europe, and groups backed by economic outcasts like Iran, Russia and North Korea. Historically the first prefer a shotgun approach; the second behave more like snipers. Here are a few of the groups that have been linked to recent ransomware and are still a threat.
This week’s News of Note includes a Foo Fighters VR concert, a peek inside Trickbot’s operations, an NFT makeover for Beatles memorabilia, some personal space for avatars, and more.
It may seem that the very term “ransomware” wasted little time going from “newish-sounding threat” to expected, constant presence in the news and IT meetings alike. But, of course, it’s ultimately just a modern word for one of the oldest crimes out there—holding someone or something hostage until someone else pays for its release. Nonetheless, as the targets and means of these attacks have evolved, keeping track of it all has become a bit more complicated than a name on a ransom note. The ransomware landscape is constantly shifting as actors change their targets, find new points of attack and think of fresh ways to leverage encrypted data. Hundreds of variants of ransomware have been documented over the past few years, but here’s a cross-section of types posing a threat right now.
Can AI build AI, what does an augmented reality theater production look like, what is the “quantum apocalypse,” and more…
Back in the day when I rushed home after school to play The Sims, I would have never imagined that one day I would actually become a Sim… Of course, it turns out The Sims—and games like it—have always been an early, somewhat limited iteration of what is now popularly referred to as the metaverse. And no matter the world you inhabit, where there are humans, there are efforts to sell things to them. But that raises the question: how different are the rules for advertising in the metaverse going to be? It turns out that whether “uni,” “multi” or “meta,” certain constants apply when it comes to advertising, no matter the ’verse.
This metaverse-meets-NFTs themed edition of News of Note includes travel, food and shoes, a big box retailer entering the NFT arena, and the purchase of (a film adaptation of) a sci-fi classic.
It’s the end of the day and you find yourself with a little downtime to catch up on your favorite streaming show. Whether it’s because each episode vacillates between the loudest of explosions and the quietest of dialogue or your hearing just isn’t what it used to be—you find yourself constantly adjusting the volume so that you can hear the crucial reveal whispered by the main character’s best friend at the penultimate moment before turning the volume down as fast as possible so that you don’t wake everyone in the house when all mayhem breaks loose and the main character is forced to escape a self-destructing secret base. Thankfully, you remember that you can just turn on closed captioning, set the remote down, and enjoy the show without missing any of the dialogue. However, for those who are deaf or have hearing loss, closed captioning is much more than a convenience—it is a vital tool for providing access to the universe of streaming.
Internet & Social Media Law Blog