RSnake Report 20240908

Iranian missiles in Russia, debt bubble, etc.

Author

Robert RSnake Hansen
September 08, 2024

Table of Contents

Hello, and thanks for reading! I hope your weekend is going great. Let’s dig into the global landscape, where significant shifts occur across various fronts.

First, Russia/Ukraine. Ukraine continues its offensive against Russia, leveraging the thermite drones we talked about to devastating effect. Video footage shows vast sections of forest in flames, with these drones catching entire swaths of trees on fire. This is probably the best video I have seen because it’s taken so close to the ground of what it would be like for soldiers on the wrong side of this horrific weapon.

“this wouldn’t be necessary”

Another key blow was struck as Ukrainian forces successfully destroyed yet another pontoon bridge over the river Seym, cutting off Russian supply lines. This is proving to be a critical choke point for Russian resupply efforts, with convoys now facing delays and losses even though Ukraine appears to be making no meaningful pushes. They seem happy to hold Kursk as a negotiating point, though they appear to have lost some ground they’ve taken there.

Ukraine’s Zelenskyy issued a warning to Iran, promising devastating consequences should Iran transfer 200 ballistic missiles to Russia, which looks like it may have already happened. The situation is teetering on the brink of further escalation, but it is unclear what Ukraine will do. Will they start treating Iran as a target of opportunity? Fighting against two countries seems like a bridge too far. For our part the CIA Director Bill Burns says that such a transfer would be a “dramatic escalation” - so,… now what?

“A ship delivered Iranian missiles”

The US’s deputy press secretary, Sabrina Singh, is claims that the bulk of Russian airfields are out of range of Ukrainian positions, so that is why the use of US ATACMS and Storm Shadows is not necessary to authorize. That, of course, is absurd because there are many other extremely valuable military assets that could be targeted beyond airfields. It’s not clear who they think they are fooling with these statements.

North Korean ballistic missiles were destroyed at an ammo depot in Voronezh, which theoretically could have been attacked using US weapons. The US is trying to get Ukraine to use its own weapons to avoid getting dragged into the conflict hopefully.

Ukraine, for their part, has developed a new type of glide bomb with a 65km range, as it uses a small rocket booster and uses GPS for targeting. This is what the US is hoping for - Ukrainian military advances using Ukrainian dollars and bombs on Russian targets so that we can slowly reduce spending and extract ourselves from direct ties to the conflict. Other NATO countries seem less worried about arming Ukraine - like the Swedish anti-ship missile, RBS-17 deployed there.

In other tech, the Ukrainian military also uses a new type of robotic dog developed by the UK. These are largely used for dangerous recon at the moment, but I think it will not take long before you start seeing these with weapons attached. Here is another slightly older video where you can see it deployed.

Lastly, the Ukrainian military has announced a successful cyber operation against Russia. Ukraine published that they successfully attacked 24 machines and destroyed their contents. It is unclear how damaging the loss of those 24 machines is, exactly, but presumably, they were somehow important to the Russians. This is more hybrid warfare.

Onto European news, Lithuania is doubling down on its border defense, placing landmines along its eastern border with Russia in a bid to bolster security and prevent any potential incursions. They have every reason to be concerned. But I am starting to worry a lot about the sheer volume of landmines that are being placed all over Europe - that makes land virtually uninhabitable for decades or centuries because they are very hard to find and disable.

“landmines and Dragon’s Teeth obstacles”

We are seeing more incursions into NATO airspace, so countries near the Ukraine/Russian conflict are on edge. We saw one Shahed drone pass over Romanian airspace. It was not shot down but it is still interesting that it was in the airspace for an hour - that’s not a small deviation in the flight path. Is this provocation, recon, some targeting officer who can’t read maps or… something else? These drones could also be fitted with EM packages to identify scanning radar stations for future targeting.

“violated NATO airspace”

In Tbilisi, mass protests have emerged as citizens rally against a new law perceived to resemble what Russia has done in the past, designating any NGO that takes foreign money as a “foreign agent.” More details here. The protests have also turned violent, so it’s worth watching to see how this unfolds.

“#NoToRussianLaw”

Now, over to Southeast Asia, where Vietnam is dealing with the fallout of Super Typhoon Yagi, which has caused widespread damage along its coast. The footage on the ground has been pretty wild, but so has the satellite footage.

“landfalls in the Philippines, China, then Vietnam”

In the Middle East, there is recent video footage showing the devastating aftermath in Rafah, Gaza Strip. This isn’t news exactly, but the destruction resembles scenes from Berlin in 1945. One has to wonder what Hamas has done to their people in many ways. It’s shocking - it will take years or decades to repair the devastation.

“Looks like Berlin in 1945”

A massive protest involving half a million people has erupted in Israel, with demonstrators demanding a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas. The tension is palpable as Israel grapples with political and military challenges with terrorism, but this is likely to cause even more propaganda warfare against their own government. And, at the same time, three Israelis were killed at the Allenby Bridge Crossing between Jordan and the West Bank after a terrorist opened fire. Israeli forces are now investigating the truck, which may have been rigged with explosives.

Israel is complete with a second test fire of the Iron Beam tech, which they say is the last line of defense after Iron Dome. The problem is it only works line of sight, and the problem with that is many drones hug the terrain, so there are only a few seconds where it may be visible. While cool, I can see why they aren’t putting their hopes and dreams on the tech. In case you are wondering, the first line of defense is bombing targets before they fire, like we are seeing in Lebanon near the towns of Kafr Sir and Froun and also in Qabrikha.

“Iron Beam”

Shifting to South America, tens of thousands of Brazilians have shown up to protest the Supreme Court’s decision to ban X (formerly Twitter) in the country. Brazil’s youngest and most-voted MP, Nikolas Ferreira, is leading the charge, vowing to continue using X despite the ban. The tension between the Brazilian government and its citizens is growing, with free speech at the center of this clash.

“Tens of thousands of Brazilians take to the streets.”

Now, let’s turn to domestic news. Authorities in Canada arrested a man who was plotting a mass shooting at a Jewish center in New York City. The would-be attacker had ties to ISIS, and thankfully, the plot was foiled before any harm could occur. The United States Department of Justice said he was Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, a 20-year-old Pakistani citizen.

In tech news, Matt Shumer has announced the release of Reflection 70B, an open-source language model trained using a novel “Reflection-Tuning” technique, allowing it to correct its mistakes. The tech world is buzzing with anticipation as Shumer teases an even more powerful 405B model coming next week. Personally, I hope that we see an 8B similar to what Llama3.1 did, so that it works on personal compute. I wrote a large section about metacognition in AI’s Best Friend, and this brings us a lot closer - reflect on what you just said - type 2 thinking.

A new study from Northeastern University in Boston has uncovered a new eavesdropping possibility: the wires in mobile phones and surveillance cameras could act as antennas, potentially allowing these devices to be eavesdropped upon at close range but through walls. Yet another reason to bring phones into high-security areas is like a SCIF.

Google might face a total of $100B in fines from subsequent class action lawsuits after losing its anti-competitive monopoly lawsuit. More or less, the dominos are in place, but it’s up to advertisers to take the next step and start flushing out their class actions. These numbers are finally big enough that Google might be forced to start doing the right thing. Until now, they have had more economic incentive to keep going and continue to be anti-competitive.

And finally, regarding some economic news, we’re seeing an unprecedented spike in personal interest payments in the United States, which have now surpassed $500 billion, a level not seen since 1959. The ripple effects of this economic strain could lead to rapid weakening of consumer spending, with further long-term damage to the US economy likely. This is not a good outlook for retail businesses.

“NEVER been seen since 1959.”

Okay, onto the articles!

Israeli forces conducted a large-scale military incursion in Jenin, destroying significant portions of the city and forcing many families to flee.

  • At least 34 Palestinians were reportedly killed during the operation, which left around 70 percent of Jenin in ruins and disrupted essential services.

  • A significant number of residents have been displaced due to the violence and destruction.

I am really curious how this is handled after the crisis is over. Who is going to rebuild? If Israel owns the Philadelphi Corridor, there will likely be some sort of control over the movement of materials and equipment.

SpaceX plans to send uncrewed starships to Mars in two years with the goal of establishing a self-sustaining city within 20 years, following successful landing tests.

  • Elon Musk announced that SpaceX will launch the first uncrewed Starships to Mars in two years.

  • The ultimate objective is to build a self-sustaining city on Mars within approximately 20 years.

Musk has also said that 4 years will see the first crewed missions, with the objective of a Mars city in 20.

Iran has sent short-range ballistic missiles to Russia, despite warnings from the US and European countries not to provide weapons that could be used against Ukraine. This development is expected to help Russia further its efforts to destroy Ukraine's civilian infrastructure. Iran has denied providing the weapons, stating its position on the war remains unchanged.

  • Iran sent short-range ballistic missiles to Russia

  • US and European countries warned of sanctions if Iran provided such missiles

  • Russia's efforts to destroy Ukraine's civilian infrastructure are expected to increase

The United States and Ukraine are collaborating to develop alternatives to Soviet-era air-defense systems to enhance Ukraine’s military capabilities amidst ongoing conflict with Russia. This partnership includes the local production of new air-defense missiles, which is critical as Ukraine faces shortages of existing missile types that are no longer in production.

  • The collaboration aims to localize the production of new air-defense missiles in Ukraine.

  • The initiative seeks to reduce Ukraine's dependence on scarce Soviet-era munitions.

If they own it, great. If we own it, there are always going to be questions about NATO’s involvement in the conflict. But again, who exactly do we think we are fooling by helping them build their own? Our fingerprints are all over this conflict.

The US has announced a new $250-million-worth military aid package for Ukraine, which includes ammunition for artillery and air defense systems, as well as armored vehicles. The package is the Biden Administration's sixty-fifth tranche of equipment to be provided to Ukraine since August 2021. The aid package does not include supplies for Ukraine's Air Force.

  • The US military aid package includes ammunition for artillery and air defense systems, as well as armored vehicles.

  • The package is the Biden Administration's sixty-fifth tranche of equipment to be provided to Ukraine since August 2021.

Dead dolphins have been found on the shores of Odesa Oblast, with a possible link to Russian Navy activities using sonar devices. The use of sonars may be causing acoustic trauma in the dolphins, leading to disorientation and increased susceptibility to infections. This is not an isolated incident, as over 50,000 dolphins perished in the Black Sea during the first eight months of the full-scale war.

  • Dead dolphins have been found on the shores of Odesa Oblast.

  • The use of sonars by Russian Navy may be causing acoustic trauma in the dolphins.

Depending on the state of the carcasses, they could also be undersea mines, and it should be easy to tell the difference.

Russian forces struck the village of Komyshany in Kherson Oblast on the night of 7-8 September, leaving four civilians injured. Russian attacks have been reported in multiple regions, including Sumy and Sadove. Ukraine's military intelligence has launched a successful cyberattack on Russia, marking Ukraine's Military Intelligence Day.

  • Russian forces struck the village of Komyshany in Kherson Oblast.

  • Multiple civilian casualties have been reported across various regions.

  • Ukraine's military intelligence has launched a successful cyberattack on Russia.

A powerful super typhoon, Yagi, has made landfall in Hainan island, China, causing widespread damage and evacuation of 410,000 people. The storm is expected to make a second landfall in Guangdong province, affecting millions. Emergency teams are working to restore power and aid affected areas.

  • A powerful super typhoon, Yagi, has made landfall in Hainan island, China.

  • The storm is expected to make a second landfall in Guangdong province, affecting millions.

  • Emergency teams are working to restore power and aid affected areas.

The Taliban has banned women and girls from secondary school classrooms and universities in Afghanistan, with restrictions on their work and public life also enforced.

  • The Taliban has enforced a ban on women and girls attending secondary school classrooms and universities in Afghanistan.

  • Restrictions on work, public life, and social media use are also imposed on women and girls in Afghanistan under the Taliban regime.

  • Women and girls who have escaped Afghanistan continue to advocate for change and push back against the Taliban's restrictions on their rights.

A Pakistani national living in Canada was arrested for plotting a terrorist attack targeting a Jewish center in New York City, with plans to carry out the attack on October 7, 2024. He was charged with providing material support to ISIS and could face up to 20 years in prison if convicted, following a detailed investigation by U.S. law enforcement agencies.

  • A 20-year-old Pakistani man planned a mass shooting against a Jewish center in NYC.

  • He was arrested for allegedly providing support to ISIS and could face significant prison time.

I don’t hear a lot of people talking about this one, but this could have been one of the most devastating attacks against the US Jewish population in history had it succeeded.

YouTube has removed hundreds of videos from the now-defunct Tenet Media channel, which is alleged to have received funding from Russian sources for content promoting Kremlin-friendly viewpoints.

  • YouTube has terminated the Tenet Media channel and others connected to a Russian influence operation.

  • The U.S. Department of Justice is actively pursuing cases to counter Russian disinformation efforts.

  • This action comes in the wake of indictments from the U.S. Department of Justice seeking to dismantle Russian influence operations in the U.S., including further sanctions and a seizure of internet domains involved in misinformation campaigns.

I really wonder how they are classifying misinformation and ownership. I am not saying it doesn’t exist, but given that I have seen these big media companies get censorship wrong many times, I’m wary of whoever is over there with the ban hammer.

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are preparing for a critical presidential debate in Philadelphia, which is expected to be their only direct confrontation before the November 5 election. The debate occurs in a tightly contested race and comes in the wake of a previous debate that negatively impacted Biden's campaign, indicating high stakes for both candidates.

  • Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are strategizing for a pivotal debate that might influence voter perception ahead of the election.

  • The debate is set against the backdrop of a sensitive political climate, with both candidates facing pressures to effectively communicate their positions and appeal to undecided voters.

The debate is on Tuesday, and the mainstream media’s rhetoric is already wildly in Kamala’s favor. For instance, the Guardian’s article “Prosecutor vs Felon”. Careful, Guardian, someone might think you’re biased there! Lol

Authorities in Mexico have arrested an alleged cartel chief linked to the decade-old disappearance of dozens of students, with relatives preparing demonstrations to mark the 10th anniversary of the incident. The arrest comes after years of protests and investigations into the case, which has branded as a 'state crime'. The exact circumstances of the students' disappearance remain unknown.

  • A woman holds a banner demanding justice for 43 missing students in Mexico.

  • The arrest is linked to the decade-old disappearance of dozens of students from Iguala, Mexico.

  • Relatives are preparing demonstrations to mark the 10th anniversary of the students' disappearance.

I hate to say it, but those kids are likely not in good condition if they are ever found. A few have been found, but likely the rest are dead or in slavery somewhere.

The mpox outbreak has resulted in over 20,000 cases and 500 deaths, mostly children, with the epicentre in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.

  • The mpox outbreak has caused significant deaths in Africa, particularly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

  • Vaccines were not made available to Africa until recently, despite being a public health emergency.

  • The main vaccine producers are prioritizing profits over people, with one company charging $200 per dose and refusing to share their technology.

In dizzying stupidity, the WHO has changed the name from monkeypox to mpox. I guess we should look for them to change bird flu to bflu? 🙄 

The heads of MI6 and CIA have warned that the international world order is under threat, like during the Cold War. They spoke of resisting an assertive Russia, Putin's war in Ukraine, and disrupting Russian sabotage campaigns across Europe. The chiefs also mentioned countering terrorism efforts to thwart the Islamic State's resurgence.

  • The international world order is under threat, like during the Cold War.

  • Russia and Putin are being resisted by MI6 and CIA in their war on Ukraine and across Europe.

  • Efforts to thwart the resurgence of the Islamic State are underway


Chinese startups are increasingly accessing advanced AI processors from Nvidia despite US export restrictions, leading to lower cloud service costs in China compared to the US. Smuggled Nvidia chips, like the A100 and H100, are readily available through small-scale vendors and online marketplaces, undermining US efforts to limit AI advancements in China.

  • Renting cloud services with Nvidia AI chips is cheaper in China than in the US.

  • Smuggling routes and local markets have facilitated access to these advanced processors for Chinese companies.

China is not a good actor. They will evade our sanctions. If we want to slow them down or stop them, we have to be a lot clearer about what happens if they don’t work with us.

Technological advancements in operating systems have not kept pace with the growth of asynchronous I/O, leading to a reliance on workarounds and inefficient solutions.

  • The cost of OS threads is high and inconsistent across platforms, making it difficult to rely on them for efficient processing.

  • The development of asynchronous I/O has led to significant investments in workarounds and inefficient solutions, rather than improving OS thread performance.

Interesting thought piece, “imagine a parallel universe where instead of focusing on making asynchronous IO work, we focused on improving the performance of OS threads such that one can easily use hundreds of thousands of OS threads without negatively impacting performance.” There may be something here - a more high-performance operating system or kernel upgrade, perhaps?

The CAMCOPTER S-100 has received the first Design Verification Report (DVR) from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for rotary wing unmanned air systems, confirming its airworthiness after extensive flight evaluations.

  • The CAMCOPTER S-100 has achieved a significant certification milestone for rotary wing unmanned air systems in Europe.

  • The DVR enables the French Navy to authorize military operations and facilitates wider acceptance of the S-100 across Europe.

This is similar to our drones, except it looks like a helicopter. I wonder if there is some efficiency there vs 4 rotors. It’s more complicated to build because you need a stabilizing tail rotor, but it may be more fuel-efficient.

Boeing's Starliner capsule returned to Earth without astronauts due to safety concerns regarding its thrusters. This follows a series of delays and cost overruns in Boeing's space programs, which have hindered its ability to compete with SpaceX in ferrying astronauts to the International Space Station, especially with the station's planned retirement in 2030.

  • Boeing's Starliner faced safety issues prompting a return without crew.

  • Boeing is struggling to keep pace with SpaceX in manned spaceflight missions.

At least they got it back. Maybe now we can figure out what all those helium leaks were all about!

Apple is poised to unveil several new products at its 'Glowtime' event on September 9, including the iPhone 16 series, Apple Watch Series 10, and new AirPods models. These devices are expected to feature various enhancements such as larger displays, improved camera technology, and new health monitoring tools. The event will be livestreamed, allowing global audiences to view the announcements in real-time.

  • The iPhone 16 series will feature several updates, including customizable shortcut buttons and an improved camera system.

  • The Apple Watch Series 10 may include new health monitoring features, although their introduction remains uncertain due to technical challenges.

Make sure you tune in if you want to see where AI is heading. They now have had enough time to actually get a handle on AI, whereas before, they were still in build mode. I use iPhone Mirroring on MacOS daily, but that is tiny by comparison to what Apple is capable of building. There have been quite a few builds being pushed over the last few weeks though, likely in prep.

The European Union is advancing toward a comprehensive digital identity system set to enhance the use of digital wallets by 2026.

  • The EU is developing a European Digital Identity (eID) that will allow citizens to store and manage their personal data securely.

  • Tim Berners-Lee supports digital wallets as a means to reclaim user control of data from major tech companies.

WhatsApp and Messenger will soon enable interoperability with third-party messaging apps in the European Union, allowing users to integrate messages from these services into their current inboxes.

  • WhatsApp and Messenger will allow integration with third-party messaging applications.

  • This change is mandated under the EU's Digital Markets Act.

I wonder when this will will come for iMessage. That is not a technical issue, it has always been to allow Apple a closed ecosystem. The better they can make iMessage the more people will want to switch to be part of that ecosystem.

YouTube is developing tools to detect AI-generated faces and voices, beginning with identifying synthetic singing within its Content ID system. The initial pilot program is scheduled to launch next year, aimed at ensuring the responsible use of AI in content creation.

  • YouTube will implement tools to identify AI-generated likenesses of artists and musicians.

  • The initial tool will focus on detecting synthetic singing in copyrighted music.

I can see this wildly backfiring, especially as people use AI to create their own avatars of themselves. Hell, even I want that.

Researchers have discovered over 280 malicious Android apps that use optical character recognition to steal cryptocurrency wallet credentials from infected devices.

  • Malicious Android apps use optical character recognition to steal cryptocurrency wallet credentials from infected devices.

  • The apps are distributed through phishing messages and can access stored images, contacts, and text messages on the device.

  • Researchers have obtained access to servers controlled by the app developers and found evidence of a sophisticated operation to extract mnemonic recovery phrases for cryptocurrency wallets.

I was assured that Google took security very seriously. 👎️ 

The United States and its allies are accusing Russia's military of employing cyber operations to attack critical infrastructure globally, particularly targeting countries such as Ukraine. A group known as Unit 29155 is reported to be behind these actions, which include espionage and sabotage against various sectors, potentially leading to severe disruptions in essential services.

  • Russia's Unit 29155 has targeted critical infrastructure using malware since 2020.

  • The FBI and other agencies have issued an advisory regarding the threats posed by this group.

Spyware vendors have adapted to circumvent government sanctions aimed at limiting the use of their tools, which are often employed by authoritarian regimes to monitor citizens. Despite international efforts, the proliferation of such spyware tools, particularly from countries like Israel, India, and Italy, continues, creating significant challenges for human rights and national security. Proposed regulatory actions seek to improve corporate transparency and block investment in these spyware companies.

  • Governments are struggling to control the growing use of advanced spyware tools.

  • Legitimate concerns about the misuse of these tools have led to calls for increased regulation and transparency.

Sorry, dual-use tech will be used by whomever has the cash and wherewithal to use it. Sanctions and policies aren’t going to cut it. It’s like putting a bandaid on a gunshot wound.

The Biden administration has introduced the 'Service for America' initiative aimed at addressing the cybersecurity workforce shortage in the US, which currently has over half a million unfilled positions. This program focuses on promoting non-traditional pathways into cybersecurity careers by removing degree requirements and encouraging skills-based hiring through apprenticeships and other learning opportunities.

  • The White House is collaborating with various agencies to help fill the cybersecurity talent gap.

  • The initiative promotes skills-based hiring and aims to attract diverse candidates from non-traditional backgrounds.

Know anyone looking to break into infosec? This might be an opportunity. Though, likely these positions are going to be mostly on the East Coast.

A U.S. Navy chief was demoted after secretly installing an unauthorized Starlink satellite dish on a warship to provide internet access to herself and other senior personnel, in violation of military protocols intended to preserve bandwidth for operations and avoid cybersecurity threats. The incident included attempts to conceal the installation and resulted in a court-martial conviction for dereliction of duty and false statements.

  • A U.S. Navy chief had an unauthorized Starlink satellite dish installed on a warship.

  • The installation violated military protocols designed to protect cybersecurity.

The funny thing is that Starlink will likely be aboard most naval vessels soon, offering exactly this kind of service to all crew members. However, it will be much more tightly controlled than this situation.

Microsoft's Bing has become the first search engine to join StopNCII, a platform aimed at preventing the dissemination of nonconsensual intimate images by utilizing digital fingerprints for detection.

  • Bing is now utilizing StopNCII's database to detect and prevent nonconsensual intimate images from appearing in search results.

  • Microsoft has reported actions taken on over 268,000 detected explicit images since implementing the partnership.

It's interesting that such a thing exists. This might be useful for online reputation management. I'm curious if Google will join, because unless they do, this is pointless.

A new variant of sextortion scams is emerging, targeting individuals by claiming their spouses are cheating and demanding payment to avoid public exposure. These scams have reportedly generated significant profits recently, using alarmingly personal information to manipulate victims into compliance.

  • New sextortion scams are using personal data to create a sense of urgency and fear among victims.

  • Recipients are being advised to ignore and delete these fraudulent emails to protect themselves.

Funny, I thought it would have been the opposite—accusing them of cheating. In a huge number of cases, this would be true and likely work. But I guess the opposite is also true, or enough people would suspect.

Disney experienced a significant data breach that compromised the personal information of Disneyland and Disney Cruise guests and employees. The breach involved over 1TB of stolen data, including private addresses, birthdates, and financial information related to Disney+.

  • Hackers stole over 1TB of sensitive data from Disney, affecting guests and staff.

  • The leaked information includes personal details and financial records from Disney's streaming services and theme parks.

A significant data breach exposed over 120,000 files containing sensitive patient information from Confidant Health, a virtual medical provider. The exposed data included audio, video, and personal health records of individuals seeking addiction and mental health treatments.

  • Confidant Health's database contained sensitive personal data including audio and video recordings of therapy sessions.

  • The breach highlights vulnerabilities in the healthcare sector regarding the protection of patient data.

Iran's banking system is facing severe instability following the largest cyberattack in its history, which compromised the data of over 20 Iranian banks. The hacking group IRLeaks is reportedly responsible for this incident, having extracted sensitive information using an exploited software by Tosan, a major digital services provider in Iran's financial sector.

  • In response, Iranian authorities have taken control of Tosan and are interrogating its employees, while a ransom of $3 million was paid to prevent further data disclosures.

  • Iran's authorities are interrogating Tosan, the software firm tied to the attack, and a ransom has been paid to prevent the release of hacked data.

Three million is a nice payday for those hackers. I can’t tell if it is politically motivated or not, but if it is, it helps further cyber operations against Iran.

New Mexico's Attorney General has filed a lawsuit against Snap Inc., accusing the company of facilitating child sexual exploitation through its Snapchat app.

  • New Mexico is suing Snap Inc. over allegations that its app has become a platform for child exploitation.

  • The lawsuit follows a months-long investigation that identified over 10,000 nonconsensual image records linked to Snapchat.

It’s unclear what the AG wants - is it to shut Snapchat down? Is it to make them operate faster? But this is exciting timing after what we saw happen with Telegram’s CEO.

A new discovery, named 'Keyhole', has been made that allows users to bypass the Digital Rights Management (DRM) systems in Microsoft Windows and activate any Microsoft Store app.

  • Keyhole enables the creation of fraudulent digital licenses for Microsoft Store applications.

  • The vulnerability stems from flaws in the licensing verification process in Microsoft's CLiP system.

The authors claim it is related to CVE-2024-38184. By bypassing the Windows licensing check, you can install all kinds of software you aren’t supposed to be able to.

There is a significant increase in the presence of GPT-fabricated scientific papers in online academic databases such as Google Scholar, which compromises the integrity of scholarly communication.

  • An increase in AI-generated scientific papers is being found in reputable databases like Google Scholar.

  • These papers often relate to sensitive topics, influencing public trust and potentially impacting policy decisions.

  • The challenges in identifying and retracting these papers complicate the integrity of academic research.

Great, as if research wasn’t already bad enough due to pay-to-play research grants, and research biases, and shoddy experimentation.

The current economic situation in the U.S. reflects a rising inflation rate, with the Bureau of Labor Statistics reporting an annual inflation rate of 2.9%. The fiscal deficit has increased significantly, now reaching $1.5 trillion within the current fiscal year, alongside a public debt that has climbed to $35 trillion.

  • The inflation rate in the United States is currently at 2.9%.

  • The fiscal deficit has increased to $1.5 trillion this fiscal year, while public debt has reached $35 trillion.

  • Economic policies are being criticized for potentially sustaining inflation and affecting the U.S. dollar's reserve currency status.

Food insecurity in the United States has increased, with 14.3% of adults and 19.2% of children in food-insecure households as of 2023. The challenges are attributed to the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and rising inflation rates, which have compounded issues that were already present during the pandemic.

  • Food insecurity has risen in the U.S. from 2022 to 2023, with notable impacts on children.

  • Adults in food-insecure households often restrict their own food intake to protect children from the effects.

This will get worse as inflation increases. More dollars are required to buy an item, but there are fewer of them because the job market is shrinking.

Wynn Resorts has agreed to pay $130 million to federal authorities for allowing unlicensed money transfers to gamblers at its Las Vegas Strip casino.

  • Wynn Resorts facilitated illegal money transfers for overseas gamblers.

  • The settlement, described by the U.S. Justice Department as the largest forfeiture by a casino for criminal wrongdoing, comes after a lengthy investigation into various methods of illicit money transmission involving foreign patrons.

Polestar, the all-electric car brand linked to Volvo, is facing financial challenges with deepening losses and stock prices dropping below $1. New leadership is being brought in to navigate the company through a slowing EV market, while analysts suggest it may need to consider becoming a sub-brand of Volvo to reduce costs.

  • Polestar's financial struggles have intensified, with losses reaching $1.46 billion and stock prices falling significantly since its listing.

  • New executive leadership is being implemented to stabilize the company amid a challenging EV market and decreasing brand awareness.

Bluesky, a social media platform, has gained 3 million new users in one week, largely due to an increase of users from Brazil after a ban on its competitor, X. The Brazilian Supreme Court has fined users trying to access X, pushing many to switch to Bluesky, which has now reached a total of 9 million users, with a significant portion from Brazil.

  • Bluesky's user base has grown significantly by 50% over just one week.

  • The growth was primarily driven by users in Brazil after X's ban.

Someday, these stats will come back to haunt Brazil. If there was any wrongdoing at all in the ban, I could easily see them losing a lawsuit against Musk over this.

Global financial markets are experiencing turmoil due to investor concerns about the Federal Reserve's monetary policy decisions. The Fed is preparing to deliver a long-awaited interest rate cut, but investors are uncertain if this move comes too late. Market volatility remains high.

  • The stock market is experiencing significant turmoil due to investor concerns about the Federal Reserve's decision-making process.

  • The Fed is preparing to deliver a long-awaited interest rate cut, which may be seen as too little, too late by some investors.

Silver demand is rising significantly due to its crucial roles in solar power, electric vehicles, and advanced technologies, leading to a notable supply deficit in recent years. The industry faces challenges including declining ore grades, depleting reserves, and a lack of investment in primary silver mining, particularly as global production is concentrated in just a few countries.

  • Silver's demand is driven by its extensive use in various applications such as solar panels and electric vehicles.

  • The market is projected to experience a cumulative supply deficit, necessitating the development of new silver mines.

Silver and gold are decent hedges against economic downturns and inflation, and if silver or gold is harder to mine, that is actually good for its speculative value—it will go up due to scarcity concerns.

In recent months, there has been a significant turnover in the U.S. labor market, with 1.3 million native-born American workers losing their jobs while 635,000 foreign-born workers were added.

  • Native-born workers in the U.S. have lost 1.4 million jobs since October 2019.

  • The labor market is seeing a significant increase in part-time jobs while full-time jobs are declining.

There are jobs and more people. If only addition and subtraction were something our politicians could use when making policy decisions.

The US economy added 142,000 jobs in August, less than expected, but unemployment rate fell to 4.2%. The Federal Reserve is under pressure to cut interest rates due to slow economic growth and subdued inflation. A rate cut decision will be close-run, with some analysts arguing for a bigger cut to prevent further slowing.

  • Job gains in the US were weaker than expected last month, with employers adding 142,000 jobs in August.

  • The unemployment rate fell back to 4.2% from 4.3% in July, but job gains in previous two months were lower than initially estimated.

  • Analysts said the latest figures kept the Federal Reserve on track for a rate cut at its meeting this month, but would do little to resolve questions about the direction of the US economy or how big a cut it should make.

Careful with these numbers. The real number of unemployed is far greater than 4.2%, they have funny ways of counting this, as people who have been unemployed for a long time are not counted.

Coinbase's shares have fallen by over a third in the last 6 months, and the company is facing multiple lawsuits and regulatory challenges, including a class action lawsuit related to bankruptcy and accounting risks, as well as a Federal Elections Commission complaint for allegedly violating campaign finance laws.

  • Coinbase's shares have fallen by over a third in the last 6 months

  • Coinbase is facing multiple lawsuits and regulatory challenges, including a class action lawsuit related to bankruptcy and accounting risks

  • The company is also facing a Federal Elections Commission complaint for allegedly violating campaign finance laws

They are violating at least the spirit of campaign finance law, if not the letter of it. The Trump token is a great example.

Tax rates in the U.S. are set to revert to higher levels after December 31, 2025, as the provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expire. Financial experts are advising individuals to consider Roth conversions before these changes take effect, especially with evolving rules regarding inherited retirement accounts.

  • Tax rates will revert to higher levels at the end of 2025.

  • Financial experts suggest taking advantage of current lower tax rates for Roth conversions.

  • Changes are occurring regarding how beneficiaries inherit retirement accounts.

I strongly believe these will be renewed or revisited in another tax plan. The economy is too weak to increase taxes further, but you never know.

Major corporations, including Ford, are reevaluating and dropping diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies amid public backlash and shareholder pressure.

  • Ford and several other corporations are distancing themselves from DEI policies.

  • Shareholders have warned companies about potential legal issues related to DEI programs.

It’s a good thing to consider since it’s illegal to base hiring decisions on people’s immutable characteristics. It's amazing that so many companies still think that’s a good idea.

Thanks so much for reading, and once again, please forward this newsletter to anyone you think should be reading it. It’s how the newsletter grows, how I know you love it and encourages me to keep going. I’d appreciate it!