By now, most of the world is aware of the ransomware attack that spread like wildfire through global computer systems. Using an exploit stolen from the National Security Agency in the United States, hackers took advantage of a known flaw in several Microsoft operating systems to take control of computers and encrypt data until victims paid a ransom in bitcoin. The hack was only stopped after a malware researcher found a kill switch, but analysts believe that more systems could be attacked in the coming days.
This attack highlights a larger problem with proprietory software and hardware sold by companies such as Microsoft. Customers pay for extra features and even enhanced “virus protection” software. As such, security, in some types of computing, is a commodity. With regards to the recent ransomware attack, the NSA alerted Microsoft to the vulnerabilities in their operating platforms. Microsoft responded with a special security patch for older operating systems such as Windows XP.
Only after the attack began, did Microsoft begin aggressively pushing the security patch and targeting Windows XP users. Not all technology companies operate according to Microsoft’s business model. Google and Apple, for example, have built security-minded infrastructure and offer programs such as Google Docs for free. As such, Apple’s mobile operating system, iOS, and Google’s Chrome operating system have both been designed with virus protection in mind. Security updates are pushed out to users as soon as a new virus is discovered. More importantly, these updates are hard to avoid as anyone with an iPhone can attest. On Google’s operating platform, updates quietly happen in the background without the need for users to check to see if their system is up-to-date.
That is one lesson of this global computer attack. Our computer infrastructure is shockingly vulnerable to both criminal and extremist attack. In the interest of defence, security updates should happen on a regular basis and can’t be subject to monetisation. Technology companies can still expand profits with the creation of new features and operating systems but the security of our individual devices is arguably in the public interest.
We can’t stop malware and viruses but we can defend ourselves by demanding that technology companies don’t leave our devices vulnerable to known flaws and exploits.
Company Profile:
Name: The Protein Bakeshop
Date of start: 2013
Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani
Based: Dubai
Size, number of employees: 12
Funding/investors: $400,000 (2018)
PROFILE BOX
Company name: Overwrite.ai
Founder: Ayman Alashkar
Started: Established in 2020
Based: Dubai International Financial Centre, Dubai
Sector: PropTech
Initial investment: Self-funded by founder
Funding stage: Seed funding, in talks with angel investors
It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
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THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
The Gandhi Murder
- 71 - Years since the death of MK Gandhi, also christened India's Father of the Nation
- 34 - Nationalities featured in the film The Gandhi Murder
- 7 - million dollars, the film's budget
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What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;
- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,
- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
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