Biodun.BBC: December 2018

Saturday, December 29, 2018

BREAKING: Cyber-attack disrupts distribution of multiple US newspapers

December 30, 2018 9H:118 GMT/UTC/ZULU TIME by Tamara Kachelmeier and Biodun Iginla, BBC News Technology reporters, New York Several US newspapers suffered major printing and delivery disruptions on Saturday following a cyber-attack, US media report. The attack led to delayed distribution of The Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Baltimore Sun and other titles belonging to Tribune Publishing. The company said it first detected the malware on Friday, which hit papers sharing the same printing plant. The attack is believed to have come from outside the US, the LA Times said. West Coast editions of the Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, which share the same production platform in Los Angeles, were also affected. "We believe the intention of the attack was to disable infrastructure, more specifically servers, as opposed to looking to steal information," an anonymous source with knowledge of the attack told the LA Times. US warns of supply chain cyber-attacks US news sites still blocked in Europe Disney v the LA Times: What's the story? Tribune Publishing spokeswoman Marisa Kollias confirmed this in a statement, saying the virus hurt back-office systems used to publish and produce "newspapers across our properties". "Every market across the company was impacted," Ms Kollias said, refusing to give more specifications on the disruptions, according to the LA Times. Other publications owned by the company include the New York Daily News, Orlando Sentinel and the Annapolis Capital-Gazette, whose staff were the targets of a deadly shooting earlier this year. Another publication, the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel was also "crippled this weekend by a computer virus that shut down production and hampered phone lines," according to a story on its website. "We are aware of reports of a potential cyber incident affecting several news outlets and are working with our government and industry partners to better understand the situation," a Department of Homeland Security official said in a statement. Investigators at the Federal Bureau of Investigations were not immediately available for comment. Related Topics MediaUnited StatesPublishing Share this story About sharing Email Facebook Messenger Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn More on this story US warns of supply chain cyber-attacks 26 July 2018 Capital Gazette shooting: Staff publish Friday edition 29 June 2018 Video Maryland shooting: How deadly newspaper attack unfolded 28 June 2018 European readers still blocked from some US news sites 26 June 2018 Disney v the LA Times: What's the story? 8 November 2017 Robot writes LA Times earthquake breaking news article 18 March 2014 US & Canada Conservative writer Payton dies at 26 29 December 2018 From the section US & Canada Full article Conservative writer Payton dies at 26 Jewish sect accused of New York kidnap 29 December 2018 From the section US & Canada Full article Jewish sect accused of New York kidnap Trump touts progress in China ties 29 December 2018 From the section US & Canada Full article Trump touts progress in China ties More Videos from the BBC The myth of a Bond girl's death 'My beautiful Gaza' Starlings form bird-shaped murmuration ‘Losing 18st left me uncomfortable in my own skin’ Christmas grief for missing teen's family Changing the perception of beauty Recommended by Outbrain Elsewhere on BBC BBC Culture Cultural Calendar BBC News Argentine woman abducted in 1980s freed

Friday, December 28, 2018

Transformer blast lights up New York skyline — and Twitter

Date created : 28/12/2018 - 14:14 GMT/UTC/ZULU TIME

Twitter/@Eat_Work_Run via REUTERS | Bright blue light is seen after a transformer explosion on Thursday at an electric power station in the New York City borough of Queens on December 28, 2018.

by Biodun Iginla, France24, New York

A transformer explosion at an electric power substation in the New York City borough of Queens lit up the night sky with a bright blue light on Thursday, mystifying some residents, but officials said no one was injured in the incident.

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“There was a boom and a bang and a flash of light,” said Jim Long, a spokesman for Fire Department New York.

“It’s all under control but we’re still getting calls from residents wondering what happened,” he said early on Friday.

The blue flashes that briefly lit up the night sky in the Astoria area of Queens, New York, shortly after 9 p.m. (0200 GMT) were caused by a power surge and electrical “arching” and sparked a transformer explosion and a small fire, said Con Edison spokesman Bob McGee.

There were no injuries, he said.

Social media lit up with videos and photos of the bright light in the night sky over New York City. The chatter continued into Friday morning.

“Why is the sky lit up bright blue in Queens New York City right now? Is it fireworks?” Louis Santoro, a New York City resident, wrote on Twitter.

One resident, Joe Calderone, told the New York Post: “Damn, I thought a UFO hit Con Ed.”

Con Edison’s McGee reassured residents after internet speculation that aliens or the villain Thanos from the recent Avengers’ movie “Infinity War” had invaded.

“No, it wasn’t space aliens,” he said.

“All power has been restored to normal. “But the videos online of the blue lights in the sky are still flying all over the internet,” McGee said.

The fire caused scattered outages, stalled some city trains and briefly blacked out LaGuardia Airport, which is located in Queens, because of a transmission dip, he said.

It also caused some flight cancellations and delays but all power and services were restored before midnight, McGee said.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said in a message on Twitter that Con Edison was evaluating the extent of power outages in the area.

He said that travelers could expect delays through early Friday.

The cause of the incident was being investigated.

BREAKING: North Korea defector hack: Personal data of almost 1,000 leaked

Symbol showing locks — Image captionTheir names, birth dates and addresses have all been leaked

by Coco Jiang and Biodun Iginla, BBC News Technology reporters, Seoul

Almost 1,000 North Korean defectors have had their personal data leaked after a computer at a South Korean resettlement centre was hacked, the unification ministry said.

A personal computer at the state-run centre was found to have been "infected with a malicious code".

The ministry said this is thought to be the first large-scale information leak involving North Korean defectors.

The hackers' identity and the origin of the cyber-attack is not yet confirmed.

The North Gyeongsang resettlement centre is among 25 institutes the ministry runs to help an estimated 32,000 defectors adjust to life in South Korea.

Are defectors' families in danger?

The North Korean government does not know the identities of all citizens who have defected. Some may be considered "missing persons" or they may have even been registered as dead.

Some 997 North Korean defectors have now been informed that their names, birth dates and addresses have been leaked but it is not clear what impact this will have.

Analysts say there are some concerns that the leak could endanger the defectors' family members who remain in North Korea.

Sokeel Park, South Korea Country Director for Liberty in North Korea, an international NGO that assists North Korean defectors, says this hack will make other defectors feel less safe living in South Korea. They may change their names, phone numbers and home addresses.

Investigations by the unification ministry and the police are currently ongoing, with the ministry saying it would "do its best to prevent such an incident from happening again".

On 19 December, the ministry became aware of the leak after they found a malicious program installed on a desktop at a centre in North Gyeongsang province.

Children whose parents defected from North Korea, arrive from a school to the South Korean Hanawon resettlement facility on July 8, 2009 in Ansung, South Korea — Image captionWhen defectors arrive in South Korea, they are put through a state resettlement programme

The ministry said that no computers at other Hana (resettlement) centres across the country had been hacked.

One expert on North Korean cyber-warfare, Simon Choi, believes that this might not be the first time a Hana centre has been hacked.

"[There is a North Korean hacking] group [that] mainly targets [the] North Korean defector community... we are aware that [this group] tried to hack a Hana centre last year," he told the BBC.

However, he added that it was not yet clear if any North Korean groups were responsible for the latest attack.

Has North Korea been behind previous attacks?

Cyber-security experts have been warning of the increasing sophistication of hackers from the North for some time.

In September, US prosecutors charged a North Korean man alleged to have been involved in creating the malicious software used to cripple the UK's National Health Service.

The 2017 incident left NHS staff reverting to pen and paper after being locked out of computer systems.

One of the most high profile hacks linked to North Korea in recent years targeted Sony's entertainment business in 2014 - wiping out massive amounts of data and leading to the online distribution of emails, and sensitive personal data.

North Korean state media has also often threatened to silence defectors in the South who make derogatory statements about the regime.

Sokeel Park told us at the BBC that cyber-attacks and phishing attempts on people working on North Korea are a common occurrence.

"They represent an asymmetric advantage for the North Korean authorities because attribution for cyber-attacks is so difficult and because the North Korean government intentionally relies so little on the internet", he added.

However, the government in the South has not pointed the finger at North Korea this time.