There are numerous reports that Apple's App store has been used to spread malware to customers forcing Apple to purge numerous Apps from the store (archived). The attack involved a social engineering vector where developers were convinced to use versions of Apple's Xcode IDE which had been implanted to spread malware in Apps produced with the implanted development software. This incident highlights serious risks posed by relying on gatekeepers to police malware in the way consumers have come to expect.
Monthly Archives: September 2015
Trump Campaign Payment Processor Fleeces Donors
MWTW in Portland, Maine alleges a third party payment processor used by Donald Trump's presidential campaign is repeating donation charges and in at least one case was reported to have charged a man who entered payment information but decided not to purchase anything from the campaign's online store (archived). In all 13 charges were attempted of which 6 ended up successfully debiting a balance from the man's bank account. The station is referring to the charges as unauthorized while the payment processor blames a 'glitch' in their system. Continue reading
US Increases Fee to Relinquish Citizenship and Residency
The United States State Department has increased the processing fee for relinquishing United States Citizenship or Permanent Residence through means other than explicit renunciation to 2350 United States dollars from 450 United States dollars (archived). The change brings the fee in line with that for having the State Department acknowledge an explicit renunciation of citizenship even though a number of the acts leading to the relinquishment of citizenship create a loss of United States nationality even without a Certificate acknowledging the loss of nationality from the State Department. A few acts that until recently allowed one to certify their loss of United States nationality at a discount include: Continue reading
Ferguson Government's Creditworthiness Reclassified as 'Junk'
Ferguson, Missouri the site of numerous clashes over the past year between rebels and Government forces has had their creditworthiness as evaluated by Moody's reduced seven levels from Aa3 to Ba1 "junk" status (archived). Moody's cites a rapid deterioration in Ferguson's financial health following the beginning of the rebellion, and if Ferguson's government continues to conceal information about how their efforts to stabilize the situation have adversely affect their finances Moody's has threatened to withdraw their rating of Ferguson completely. Ferguson government leader James Knowles considers Moody's action "unfair" and that the embattled government is financially healthy enough to not require further debt issuances at this time. Moody's is predicting Ferguson's government could be insolvent by 2017.
CFTC Regulatory Butt Thunder Continues
As Bitcoin continues marching towards its grandiose destiny, it seems we just can’t get enough of the inept US Butt Thunder striking yet another fool boy and his pale imitation of a domestic commodity exchange. Continue reading
Bitcoin Mining Difficulty Grows For The Sixth Consecutive Time
Today's adjustment in the Bitcoin mining difficulty sees it grow to a total of 59,335,351,234, an increase of 4.17% over the September 4th update. Today's change also marks the 6th consecutive increase, a streak which began back in July of this year.
"Y Combinator" Too Generic To Trademark
The United States Patent and Trademark Office has ruled against startup and censorship incubator Y Combinator's petition to register their name as a trademark (archived). The office in making the decision noted that "Y Combinator" as a term of art used in computer science and mathematics is by its nature too generic to stand as a distinguishing mark denoting a particular trade venture.
BitPay Claims Hack Amounting to 5000 Bitcoins
According to the Atlanta Business Chronicle BitPay Chief Financial Officer Bryan Krohn's loose treatment of email credentials resulted in the transfer of 5000 Bitcoins from BitPay's control (archived). An adversary party who received the credentials from Krohn managed to send emails posing as Krohn which resulted in Chief Executive Officer Stephen Pair sending transactions of 1000, 1000, and 3000 Bitcoin to Bitcoin addresses outside of BitPay's control. BitPay's insurer declined to pay $950,000 requested by the firm to cover the loss. Whether this was an actual attack or internal embezzlement is unknown, and likely unknowable. This is just the latest in a string of problems for BitPay including layoffs, low return yet high cost marketing expenses, and their inability to convert Bitcoin users to retail consumer uses of their coins.
Pascal Reid Pleads Guilty Promising to Service USG "Law Enforcement" – Full Draft Plea Text
Pascal Reid who was charged for his involvement in trading Bitcoin on an individual basis in the state of Florida has announced his intention to accept a guilty plead which compels him to train "Law Enforcement" on Bitcoin related topics. He is further compelled as well to consult with Miami area police and the United States Secret Service on cases involving Bitcoin as they see fit. Reid's efforts to have charges dismissed back in November were denied by Judge Katherine Fernandez Rundle. In addition to working on the behalf of local and federal "Law Enforcement" agencies the plea agreement includes a sentence of 90 days in jail with credit for time served, and the agreement is further conditional on Reid reimbursing Florida $500 for their expenses in prosecuting him. The explicit public disclosure that the plea bargainer must turn stoolie is uncommon, but it highlights that the cost of signing the papers and avoiding trial is your own title to yourself. It is a tremendous credit to the local officers of the court that the explicit nature of this was made available to the public in this rare occasion. All parties involved in Bitcoin are advised against knowingly dealing with Pascal Reid, or any other party know to have entered a guilty plea, either in business or mere conversation for the entirety of the future. The full text of the draft plea agreement is below: Continue reading
War on Engineering: Teen Arrested for Building Clock
Police in Irving, Texas arrested a teenager on Monday for bringing a a clock he produced on his personal time to school to show off to his Engineering instructors. Up until today local authorities were intending to pursue "hoax bomb" charges against the teenager, Ahmed Mohamed in spite of his constant assertions that the device he created was nothing more than a clock. Ahmed was involved in robotics club in Middle School and wanted to make a project at home he could use to demonstrate his engineering prowess for his new High School teachers. Ahmed's teachers upon hearing the clock beep pulled him out of class and alerted police who arrested him and drew up initial charges (archived). School principal Dan Cummings summarily suspended Ahmed from school grounds for three days. Continue reading