The lower profile of hacktivism by Anonymous and the state apparatus Sawako Uchida and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times According to IBM’s X-Force, the international community is witnessing an enormous decline in the activity of hacking by political hacktivists. Of course, the decentralized hacktivist group Anonymous is part of this huge reduction in political…
Banking Trojans from Zbot to Goz Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times Banking Trojans increase by 16% in 2018 Moscow-based cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Lab Solutions has raised an alarm over the skyrocketing number of cyberattacks with popular malware, Banking Trojans. According to the cybersecurity company, Banking Trojans attacked about 889,452 users of its anti-phishing software…
Financial solution for cyberattacks should entail cyber insurance Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times Cyberattacks impacting well-known brands In December 2018, the Modern Tokyo Times reported that one of the world’s leading hotel chains, Marriot International, came under heavy cyberattacks. In the report, the Modern Tokyo Times pointed out that the unknown cyber assailants compromised…
HP beefs up cybersecurity on its latest consumer laptop TurnOnVPN Introduction HP releases a new laptop every year, so why is their soon-to-be-released Spectre laptop so special? Well, as it turns out, HP decided to go all out with security this time around, and the new Spectre x360 13 reflects their new focus on security,…
Is the WhatsApp under attack by GIFs? Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times WhatsApp chats are vulnerable to malicious GIF – Expert Warns Instant messaging services (IMS) enable users to seamlessly connect with friends, family members and colleagues. With such services, a user can send a very important message to another, and the message is…
Russia’s Advances in Electronic Warfare Capability Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: Roger McDermott The Jamestown Foundation Since the reform of Russia’s Armed Forces began in late 2008, Moscow has developed a credible conventional military capability. Among the subset of capabilities over the past decade are the critically important advances in combat support offered by Electronic…
Edward Snowden Weighs the Option of asylum in Germany Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times American whistleblower Edward Snowden has once again declared his interest to accept a political asylum offer from the German authorities. He, however, warned that if he mysteriously passes away, his death is nowhere a case of suicide. In an exclusive…
Cyber systems and LockerGoga Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times LockerGoga: Are manufacturing companies under threat? I.T.-based companies around the world are investing a sizable fraction of their revenues in building formidable cyber defense systems against viruses. For many of them, devoting a huge sum of their revenues to upgrading their firewalls and antivirus software…
Is Avast taking the lead in safeguarding crypto-wallets? Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times Within One Year, Avast Safeguarded Over 253,000 Cryptowallets For many crypto-asset investors out there, seeing their digital currencies in tact is all that matters. Indeed, they tend to pay less attention to who does what to shield their coins from unscrupulous…
Cyberattacks and NotPetya ransomware Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times Mondelez vs. Zurich case turn the spotlight on insurance companies Much as the widely reported NotPetya malware attacks are gradually disappearing from the headlines, its aftermath still holds sway. Apparently, the Mondelez vs. Zurich Case has become a constant reminder that several companies are still…
The state of Maine takes a bold lead in protecting users’ privacy Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times Maine Takes a Bold Step to Protect Internet Users Internet users in the State of Maine, USA, have a reason to breathe a sigh of relief as their lawmakers have taken a bold step to protect their…
Capitalist Big Brother in Japan: Yahoo Japan to Mizuho FG and George Orwell Sawako Utsumi and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times The privacy of information is endlessly being crushed just like freedom on social media. George Orwell in 1949 published a powerful book titled Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984). Sadly, the ramifications of his words are…
Cyberspace in uproar after Google slams Huawei Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times Fears Grip Users as Google Suspends Services to Huawei It is often said that it is easy to start a war, but no one knows when the war would end. Indeed, there is no better way to describe the U.S.-China trade war…
Online invaders hack Binance for over $40 million Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times Hackers hit Binance Crypto Exchange, Steal $40.7 in Bitcoin The world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, has been reportedly hacked by unknown persons. It announced Tuesday that there has been an incursion on its online platform, which led to the loss of…
Is spyware the greatest threat to online privacy, or a cybersecurity necessity? Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times Dealing with Stalkerware infected devices It usually starts with a very simple text message, email and/or photo image attachment. But this is quite different from the love text and/or photo a man’s wife sends to show her…
US and Japan affirm Cybersecurity ties: Japan’s non-Northeast Asian fixation and Russia Sawako Utsumi and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan claims that he desires to solve the protracted territorial dispute with the Russian Federation. Yet, many within the corridors of power in Moscow dispute the sincerity of Japan.…
Learning Without Fighting: New Developments in PLA Artificial Intelligence War-Gaming Publication: China Brief By: Elsa Kania The Jamestown Foundation The Opportunities and Challenges of Intelligentization A lack of recent experience in combat is often characterized as a major liability and potential disadvantage for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in any future conflict scenario.…
Is Facebook on the verge of downfall? Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times The Possible Downfall of Facebook Facebook! Facebook! Facebook! Indeed, that name rings a bell. Even in the remotest part of the world, Facebook is a well-known social media (SM) platform. In fact, this mirrors its unparalleled popularity. As a social network, Facebook…
Electronic warfare and Japan: New approach to the Russian Federation? Sawako Utsumi and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times The government of Japan is focused on a five-year plan to upgrade areas related to electronic warfare, cyber wars, cyberspace, and other modern military areas. At the same time, Japan understands the growing reality of new…
Russia’s Military Undertaking Growing Role in Creation of ‘Sovereign Internet’ Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: Roger McDermott The Jamestown Foundation Russia’s Ministry of Defense has confirmed its involvement in the creation of a “sovereign Internet,” which marks part of its wider efforts to transform its system of military communications. This will involve the Russian military…
Can the Trump Administration do more to protect children online? Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times Lack of Cybersecurity Measures for Children is Destroying Homes Most parents should now be aware that February 5th this year marked a Safer Internet Day. Indeed, it’s a day that reminds teachers, in general, and society, in particular, that…
Is a global Bill of Rights needed to protect digital privacy against China’s cashless systems? Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times China’s Cashless Systems: A Flagrant Violation of Human Rights Technology keeps shaping our world every day. And the beauty of innovative technology is that it has no substitute. For instance, the United States automaker…
‘Special Outsider’: Russia Joins the Race for Global Leadership in Artificial Intelligence Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: Sergey Sukhankin The Jamestown Foundation On February 26, the industrial director of the Rostec State Corporation, Sergey Abramov, declared that work on the fourth generation of the Ratnik future infantry combat system is underway. The system is said…
Israel and NSO Group: Pegasus spyware found in over 40 nations is alarming journalists Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times In 2017, the NSO Group was highlighted by Modern Tokyo Times in relation to its spyware being used against journalists in Mexico. However, despite the negative human rights issue related to this Israeli company, it…
Will Apple revolutionize the media industry? Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times Apple’s news subscription service to reshape the global media industry If the New York Times report is anything to go by, U.S. smartphone maker Apple is on the verge of launching its news subscription service before the end of this month. Already, Apple…
Common cybersecurity standards a solution sites Huawei to allay US concerns Noriko Watanabe and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times Huawei, understanding international concern about security risks is calling for the need for an international approach to allay fears of certain governments. This notably applies to America and staunch allies that have also spoken out…
Another Step Forward Toward ‘Sovereign’ Russian Internet Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: Sergey Sukhankin The Jamestown Foundation Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov talked with Russian journalists on Wednesday, February 27, following news reports in the United States claiming that US Cyber Command had actively hacked and briefly taken offline the St. Petersburg–based Internet Research Agency. The…
Cyber defense in Germany should be a serious concern Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times Has German cyber defense system collapsed? In July 2017, German authorities raised an alarm over increasing cases of cyberattacks on its officials and companies. According to Reuters, German companies have lost billions of euros on industrial espionage. In its 339-page…
Time for the U.S. to take digital privacy seriously Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times GDPR-styled privacy regulations in the face of data abuses On May 25th, 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), a regulation that gives European residents greater control over their data, came into force, ending years of abuse of customer…
JP Morgan moves forward with bold cryptocurrency initiative Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times The cryptocurrency industry gets a boost as JP Morgan joins the fray Last Thursday, US banking giant JP Morgan Chase announced that it would launch its cryptocurrency, JPM Coin. By this announcement, the investment and financial institution will become the first…
Will Russia disconnecting from the Internet up the stakes in cyber defense? Horace C. White Modern Tokyo Times U.S.-Russia relations may worsen as Russia initiates moves to disconnect from the Internet Just when everyone thought that the Cold War between the United States and Russia had ended, Russian officials are taking major steps that suggest it…
Arrests in Poland Contribute to the International Controversies Surrounding Huawei By: John Dotson China Brief The Jamestown Foundation Introduction The December 1, 2018, arrest of Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou (孟晚舟) in Vancouver—an arrest made by Canadian officials pursuant to a warrant issued in the United States—touched off a three-way diplomatic firestorm between China,…
