News of the Cyber World

[kyonides]

Donald Trump Reinstated on Facebook, Instagram

Meta restored former President Donald Trump’s access to Facebook and Instagram on Feb. 9.

Andy Stone, spokesperson for the Big Tech firm, told Reuters that Trump’s access was restored. The former president has 23 million followers on Instagram and 34 million on Facebook.
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At the time, Meta’s President of Global Affairs Nick Clegg explained that the company no longer believes the former president’s Facebook account should be restricted.

New Facebook guardrails entail “heightened penalties for repeat offenses—penalties which will apply to other public figures whose accounts are reinstated from suspensions related to civil unrest under our updated protocol,” Clegg said. “In the event that Mr. Trump posts further violating content, the content will be removed and he will be suspended for between one month and two years, depending on the severity of the violation.”

With Trump’s reinstatement, it gives him another way to fundraise for his 2024 presidential bid.
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“Sadly, Facebook has been doing very poorly since they took me off,” Trump wrote in January. “Whoever made that decision, and the decision to take me off, will go down in the Business Hall of Fame for two of the worst decisions in Business History!”
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In a surprise move, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) defended Meta’s decision to allow Trump back on Facebook and Instagram, saying it’s appropriate for the public to have wider access to messaging from one of the most popular political candidates in the country.

North Korea ransomware targets hospitals to fund digital spycraft

North Korea is deploying ransomware in the health care sector to supplement cyber ops against the U.S. and South Korean governments, according to a joint alert released Thursday from multiple U.S. and South Korean agencies.

Furthermore, the alert from the National Security Agency, FBI, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Department of Health and Human Services, the Republic of Korea’s Defense Security Agency and the National Intelligence Service warns that Pyongyang is using the illicit cryptocurrencies obtained from the attacks to support state-backed espionage operations that target U.S. defense networks and the defense industrial base.
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In fact, many cyber officials and lawmakers have called for additional regulations to ensure health care organizations are implementing proper cybersecurity protections to help defend against the ongoing scourge of ransomware.
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“Andariel does not appear to be focused on fund-raising like some of their peers. They are still carrying out the old school intelligence mission, targeting government, the defense sector, NGOs and others. They may be doing this just to keep the lights on,” Hultquist noted.

US, UK sanction members of ‘notorious cyber gang’ TrickBot

he U.S. and British governments on Thursday announced sanctions on seven people affiliated with the Russia-based TrickBot cybercrime gang, noting the group’s extensive history of criminal activity and some members’ affiliation with Russian intelligence services.

A statement issued by the U.S. Treasury Department referred to the group as a “notorious cyber gang,” and said the sanctions mean that all property and interests in property held by the named individuals in the U.S. or controlled by Americans must be blocked and reported to Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control. Thursday’s action marks the first time the British government issued sanctions over ransomware, the British government said in a statement.
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That announcement came a week after Anatoly Legkodymov, a Russian national living in China, was arrested in Miami in connection with running Bitzlato, a cryptocurrency exchange the government called “a haven for criminal proceeds and funds.”

Both countries’ statements highlight the connections to Russian intelligence services. “The Trickbot Group’s preparations in 2020 aligned them to Russian state objectives and targeting previously conducted by Russian Intelligence Services,” Treasury said in its statement. “This included targeting the U.S. government and U.S. companies.” The British government said that “key group members highly likely maintain links to the Russian Intelligence Services from whom they have likely received tasking.”
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U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said in a statement that the joint action “demonstrates our continued commitment to collaborating with partners and allies to address Russia-based cybercrime, and to countering ransomware attacks and their perpetrators.