Bonum Certa Men Certa

Leftover Links 05/08/2023: Rust Holes and More Layoffs



  • Leftovers

    • Education

      • Parents accuse Bellevue School District of favoring rich kids in school closures

        When the Bellevue School District (BSD) opened its newest, state of the art elementary school on pristine wetlands and powered by geothermal energy in 2018, at a cost of $49 million, its principal did a welcoming dance in a video to show off the school.

        As she led the camera through the Microsoft Showcase school, showing classrooms that could be converted to learning pods for smaller or larger groups, she also pointed to teachers in a large group, waiting to teach kids.

        Today, however, issues of equity are dampening the shining reputation of the school—and raising questions about the district’s commitment to fairness.

    • Hardware

    • Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)

      • Bruce SchneierPolitical Milestones for AI

        ChatGPT was released just nine months ago, and we are still learning how it will affect our daily lives, our careers, and even our systems of self-governance.

        But when it comes to how AI may threaten our democracy, much of the public conversation lacks imagination. People talk about the danger of campaigns that attack opponents with fake images (or fake audio or video) because we already have decades of experience dealing with doctored images.

    • Security

      • InfoSecurity MagazineThreat Actors Use AWS SSM Agent as a Remote Access Trojan

        Threat actors have been observed using Amazon Web Services ( AWS ) 's System Manager (SSM) agent as a Remote Access Trojan (RAT) on Linux and Windows machines.

      • Rust BlogThe Rust Programming Language Blog: Security advisory for Cargo (CVE-2023-38497)

        This is a cross-post of the official security advisory. The official advisory contains a signed version with our PGP key, as well.

        The Rust Security Response WG was notified that Cargo did not respect the umask when extracting crate archives on UNIX-like systems. If the user downloaded a crate containing files writeable by any local user, another local user could exploit this to change the source code compiled and executed by the current user.

      • SUSE's Corporate BlogSUSE and IBM: Enhancing Data Security (a Technical Reference Documentation Getting Started guide) [Ed: "confidential computing" is a sham that encourages companies and governments to outsource their operations and data based on false premises of confidentiality]

        The Essence of Confidential Computing At its core, confidential computing addresses the vital need of safeguarding data while it is in use. SUSE and IBM work together to deliver advanced technical capabilities, like confidential computing. IBM Z€® and LinuxONE systems provide key hardware capabilities for the trusted execution environment.

      • Bleeping ComputerHackers can abuse Microsoft Office executables to download malware

        The list of LOLBAS files – legitimate binaries and scripts present in Windows that can be abused for malicious purposes...

      • SANSFrom small LNK to large malicious BAT file with zero VT score, (Thu, Aug 3rd)

        Last week, my spam trap caught an e-mail with LNK attachment, which turned out to be quite interesting.

      • IT WireTenable chief says no way to verify Microsoft claims about fixing Azure flaw

        Microsoft claims it has completely fixed a critical security issue in its Azure cloud platform, found in March by researchers from security firm Tenable, who then told Microsoft about it. Tenable chief executive and chairman Amit Yoran had claimed in a blog post on Wednesday that it took more than 90 days for Microsoft to effect a partial fix.

      • SANSAre Leaked Credentials Dumps Used by Attackers, (Fri, Aug 4th)

        This is a classic problem: One day, you create an account on a website (ex: an online shop), and later, this website is compromised. All credentials are collected and shared by the attacker. To reduce this risk, a best practice is to avoid password re-use (as well as to not use your corporate email address for non-business-related stuff).

      • Security WeekExploitation of Ivanti EPMM Flaw Picking Up as New Vulnerability Is Disclosed

        Exploitation of the Ivanti EPMM flaw CVE-2023-35078 is picking up as a new critical vulnerability tracked as CVE-2023-35082 is disclosed.

      • Security WeekFive Eyes Agencies Call Attention to Most Frequently Exploited Vulnerabilities

        Five Eyes government agencies have published a list of the software vulnerabilities that were most frequently exploited in malicious attacks in 2022.

      • Security Week670 ICS Vulnerabilities Disclosed by CISA in First Half of 2023: Analysis

        CISA disclosed 670 ICS vulnerabilities in the first half of 2023, but roughly one-third have no patches or mitigations from the vendor.

      • LWNSecurity updates for Friday

        Security updates have been issued by CentOS (bind and kernel), Debian (cjose, firefox-esr, ntpsec, and python-django), Fedora (chromium, firefox, librsvg2, and webkitgtk), Red Hat (firefox), Scientific Linux (firefox and openssh), SUSE (go1.20, ImageMagick, javapackages-tools, javassist, mysql-connector-java, protobuf, python-python-gflags, kernel, openssl-1_1, pipewire, python-pip, and xtrans), and Ubuntu (cargo, rust-cargo, cpio, poppler, and xmltooling).

      • USDOJNigerian National Pleads Guilty to $1.25 Million Business Email Compromise Scam Impacting U.S. Company

        Onwuchekwa Nnanna Kalu, 39, a Nigerian National from Rivers State, Nigeria, pleaded guilty today to stealing $1.25 million from an investment firm located in Boston, through a business email compromise (“BEC”) scam. The plea was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Acting Special Agent in Charge David Geist, of the FBI Washington Field Office's Criminal and Cyber Division.

        Nnanna Kalu pleaded guilty in the District of Columbia to one count of wire fraud. U.S. District Court Judge Randolph D. Moss scheduled a sentencing hearing for November 29, 2023. Kalu was arrested in 2022 and has been detained by the Court as a risk of flight.

      • Gray Media GroupMassive data breach could impact many who attended or worked for public schools in Colorado

        A news release issued by the Colorado Department of Higher Education is notifying the public of a “data incident.”

        KKTV 11 News is working to learn more about the situation, but the release reads as follows:

        The Colorado Department of Higher Education (“CDHE”) is providing notice of a cybersecurity incident that may involve the personal information of certain individuals. CDHE is providing information about the measures it has taken in response to the incident, and steps impacted individuals may take to protect themselves against possible misuse of information.

    • Defence/Aggression

      • JURISTSingapore executes second prisoner in one week despite international outcry

        Singaporean authorities executed Mohamed Shalleh Bin Abdul Latiff, a 39-year-old former delivery driver, Thursday for trafficking 54.04 grams of diamorphine, a controlled drug, which is four times the amount required to trigger the mandatory death penalty under Singapore’s Misuse of Drugs Act. Shalleh is the second person executed by the country in the last week.

      • Federal News NetworkUS military may put armed troops on commercial ships in Strait of Hormuz to stop Iran seizures

        The U.S. military is considering putting armed personnel on commercial ships traveling through the Strait of Hormuz, in what would be an unheard of action aimed at stopping Iran from seizing and harassing civilian vessels. That's what five American officials told The Associated Press on Thursday. If implemented, it would be an extraordinary step by the Pentagon as it grapples with a renewed effort by Iran to harass and seize ships traveling in the strait, through which 20% of all the world’s crude oil passes. Iran’s mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the AP about the U.S. proposal.

      • War in Ukraine

    • Environment

    • Finance

      • AxiosHackerOne lays off 12% of workforce

        Popular bug bounty program HackerOne is laying off 12% of its workforce, CEO MÃ¥rten Mickos told employees earlier this week.

      • Daniel PocockDaniel Pocock: Conflicts of Interest: Extinction Rebellion & Rishi Sunak, Greenpeace & Donald Trump

        There have been many rumors about conflicts of interest in the Debian Google Summer of Code and Outreachy internships. The only case where evidence has appeared is the former leader himself, the very person who started rumors about other mentors and I included.

        Yet conflicts of interest can come in many forms. One of the most bizarre cases I've seen was a pensions industry meeting in the UK.

        Representatives of pension administrators and government officials gathered in the town of Swindon. Rishi Sunak, who has recently become Prime Minister, attended the meeting in his former role as local authorities minister.

      • AxiosThe lesson for the Fed in "early hiker" monetary policy

        One reason to be optimistic that U.S. inflation can fall without a recession: Many smaller nations that did move earlier than the Federal Reserve to hike interest rates have done exactly that.

        Why it matters: The unusual dynamics of a post-pandemic global economy appear to be making a so-called "immaculate disinflation" — one with minimal pain — more plausible than it once seemed based on the historical record.


        What they're saying: "There are other economies we can also look to to get some sense of what's likely to happen in the U.S. — other economies that were actually a lot faster in tightening monetary policy," Jan Hatzius, chief economist at Goldman Sachs, said on a call with reporters last month.

      • BloombergTech Giants Slash Marketing Budgets, Bruising Major Ad Firms

        After massive layoffs earlier this year, technology giants have found one more item to slash: marketing budgets.

        Several large advertising companies reported a sharp cutback in spending from US tech and telecom companies, which had recently become some of the largest marketers in the world.

      • Telus slashing 6,000 jobs in order to remain competitive

        According to news outlets, including CBC News, the company plans to cut approximately 6,000 jobs. 4,000 roles will be eliminated at Telus’ main business, with the remaining 2,000 affecting Telus International.

        President and CEO Darren Entwistle claimed that the reduction is being made with “a very heavy heart” and was prompted by the “evolving regulatory, competitive and macroeconomic environment.”

        “Against the backdrop of rapid transformation in our industry and the ways in which our customers want to engage with us, today we are announcing a significant investment in an extensive efficiency and effectiveness initiative across Telus,” Entwistle said in a news release obtained by CBC News.

      • Study after study shows that working from home leads to more efficiency and higher quality work — so why do companies want people back in the office? Here are 3 possible reasons

        Employees overwhelmingly love the option to work from home. More than nine in 10 prefer it exclusively or as a hybrid arrangement, a Gallup study shows.

        Employers, on the other hand, don't appear fully on board, as many are calling employees back into the office.

        In some ways, employers' resistance to remote work is a mystery. After all, eliminating commutes gives the average U.S. employee almost one extra hour to work each day, according to research from the University of Chicago’s Becker Friedman Institute. Plus, staff forced to work in-office are more likely to experience burnout and low engagement, per Gallup.

    • AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

    • Censorship/Free Speech

    • Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

    • Monopolies



Recent Techrights' Posts

Microsoft's Serial Strangler and Matthew J. Garrett Join Forces in Trying to Gag Techrights (for Exposing Microsoft Corruption and Crimes Against Women)
Whose terrible idea was it?
Free University of Bozen-Bolzano Proud to Host Free Software Talk by Richard Stallman
ahead of Monday's talk
Slopwatch: Anti-Linux Machine-Generated FUD (LLM Slop) From GBHackers, CybersecurityNews, and Guardian Digital, Inc (Google News Promotes Slop Plagiarism, Misinformation)
Companies that lie try to drown out the signal with falsehoods
 
Good Explanation of Why IBM Has Chosen to Conceal Mass Layoffs (of 'Expensive' Staff) as "R.T.O." (Even For People Who Never Worked at the Office to Which They're Ordered to "Return")
Many remaining IBM (or Red Hat) workers in Europe are in "cheaper" places such as Brno
Links 22/02/2025: Labour Department Investigates Microsoft Infosys Amid Mass Layoffs, Large Law Firms Caught Red Handed With LLM Slop (Defrauding Clients and Courts)
Links for the day
Gemini Links 22/02/2025: Analog Stuff, Sigil, and SSGs
Links for the day
Microsoft's Market Share in Cameroon Falls to New Lows
This means a lot of Android users (iOS is about 4 times smaller), but Android does not mean freedom
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, February 21, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, February 21, 2025
The Streisand Effect is Real
So don't be evil. Also, don't strangle women.
Links 21/02/2025: Linux Foundation Openwashing, Microsoft Copilot Goes Down
Links for the day
Links 21/02/2025: Doomscrolling and European Ham Radio Show
Links for the day
Links 21/02/2025: TikTok Layoffs, WebOS Software Patents in Bad Hands
Links for the day
Gemini Links 21/02/2025: Web Browsers, Mechanical Shortcuts, and Internet Hygiene
Links for the day
Richard Stallman 'Only' Founded the FSF
there's no reason to be upset at the FSF for keeping their founder in the Board
Techrights Disconnected From the United States Two Years Ago
Did people really need to wait for the US government to become this hostile towards the media before recognising the threat?
Before Trying Censorship by Extortion the Serial Strangler From Microsoft Literally Begged Us to Delete Pages
This is very clearly just a broad campaign of intimidation
Hype Watch: Weeks After Microsoft Disappointed Investors With "Hey Hi" It's Trying Some "Quantum" Hype (Adding Impractical Vapourware to Accompany This Hype and Even LLM Slop in 'News' Clothing)
Remember "metaverse"? What happened to media hype about "blockchain" and "IoT"?
Report About February Mass Layoffs at Microsoft (Third Wave of Microsoft Layoffs in 2025) Comes Back From the Dead
Yesterday we wrote about an article in CRN (reporting Microsoft layoffs) being removed without any reasons specified
Links 21/02/2025: Myanmar Scam Centre and Disruptions at USPTO
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, February 20, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, February 20, 2025
gbhackers.com is Not Hackers, It's LLM Slop Outputs (Fake 'Articles') That Attack 'True Hackers'
A site called linuxsecurity.com keeps doing this and now we see the slopfarm gbhackers.com doing the same
Gemini Links 20/02/2025: Law of Warming and Cooling, Health, and Devlog
Links for the day
linuxsecurity.com Continues to Spread Lies or Machine-Generated FUD (Microsoft LLMs Likely the Source) About OpenSSH and Linux
this LLM problem is global
Links 20/02/2025: Microsoft Infosys Layoffs and IRS Layoffs (Good News for Rich Tax Evaders)
Links for the day
IBM Layoffs in Europe Already Happening or Underway (UK and Spain). They Try Not to Call These "Layoffs".
"CIO" in particular was repeatedly mentioned lately, as was Consulting
People Who Came From Microsoft Demanding Removal of Articles About Them, About Microsoft, and About Microsoft GitHub is "Generous" (According to Them)
Imagine choosing a law firm that borrows money in the same year just to avoid overdraft in the bank!
Possibly a Third Round of Mass Layoffs at Microsoft in 2025 ("Cloud Solution Architects, Customer Roles"), Report Removed or Censored
This is literally the top story for "microsoft layoffs" right now
Instead of 'DoS Protection' Cloudflare is Allegedly Conducting 'DoS Attacks' on Users of Browsers Other Than Firefox and GAFAM's DRM Sandboxes (Chrome, Safari and Others)
If you value the Web, you will avoid Cloudflare
Mixing Real With Fake in One 'Article' (by "Director of Content, Help Net Security")
From what we can gather, he got machines to generate some slop for him
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, February 19, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, February 19, 2025