Andrew Blake

Espionage campaign targets U.S. sectors using malware tied to Chinese hackers: Report

Critical industries in the United States and abroad have been targeted recently by a cyber-espionage campaign waged with computer code previously traced to the Chinese military, but security researchers analyzing the latest activity are skeptical of solely blaming the same state-sponsored hacking group as before.

October 18, 2018

Tea Party Patriots Citizens Fund, GOP super PAC, suffers data leak due to misconfigured cloud server

Internal documents belonging to the Tea Party Patriots Citizens Fund, a Republican super PAC, were publicly exposed online as a result of a misconfigured database, including material involving the 2016 U.S. presidential race and call lists containing the names and phone numbers of more than a half-million people, a cybersecurity firm said Wednesday.

October 18, 2018

Twitter releases millions of tweets from foreign influence campaigns linked to Russia and Iran

Twitter has made available millions of tweets attributed to foreign influence operations originating in Russia and Iran, shining a light on previously disclosed interference campaigns waged by weaponizing social media.

October 17, 2018

Congress should ‘seize the moment’ and legalize marijuana after Canada: Ron Wyden

Sen. Ron Wyden, Oregon Democrat, said Congress should follow Canada's lead and federally legalize marijuana, citing economic benefits being reaped north of the border by retail weed sales starting Wednesday.

October 17, 2018

Paul Manafort seeks to ditch prison jumpsuit for court appearances

Paul Manafort, President Trump's former election campaign chairman, has requested a change of outfit prior to appearing Friday in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia.

October 17, 2018

Critics blast proposed regulations for demonstrations on Park Service land in D.C.

New rules proposed by the National Park Service are coming under criticism over concerns involving their potential impact on protests around Washington, D.C., as the federal government's window for receiving public comments nears closing.

October 13, 2018

Donald Trump’s remarks about Civil War generals spurs debate over media’s coverage

President Trump sparked debate on social media Friday evening by calling Robert E. Lee a "great general" during a campaign rally, drawing scrutiny over his remark as well as the media's reaction, with many conservatives complaining of news outlets cutting out the full context.

October 13, 2018

Remains of 11 infants found hidden inside former funeral home: Detroit police

Authorities found the remains of 11 infants and stillborn children hidden in the ceiling of a former funeral home in Detroit, Michigan, police said Friday.

October 13, 2018

Prince estate tells Donald Trump to stop playing ‘Purple Rain’ at campaign rallies

Relatives of Prince have asked President Trump to stop playing "Purple Rain" at campaign rallies, echoing similar requests made previously on behalf of fellow Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees ranging from Aerosmith to Queen.

October 13, 2018

Soundgarden unlikely to continue without late singer Chris Cornell, says lead guitarist

Soundgarden lead guitarist Kim Thayil has cast doubt on the Grammy-winning grunge rock pioneers continuing as a band without late frontman and co-founder Chris Cornell.

October 12, 2018

Feds told of twice as many threats against lawmakers, mostly posted online: Report

Federal authorities are receiving roughly twice as many requests to investigate threats made against lawmakers than they were a few years ago, according to a Justice Department official handling cases in D.C.

October 12, 2018

Bill O’Reilly compares organized anti-Kavanaugh protesters to Nazis

Bill O'Reilly drew parallels between Nazis and protesters opposed to Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh on the heels of demonstrators nearly derailing the judge's confirmation to the United States Supreme Court.

October 12, 2018

DHS official touts midterms as ‘most secure election in the modern era’

Precautions taken prior to next month's midterms will make it likely "the most secure election in the modern era," despite ongoing attempts by foreign nations to influence its outcome, a high-ranking Trump administration official said.

October 12, 2018

WannaCry cyberattack cost British government over $120 million: Report

British health officials incurred over $120 million in costs related to the WannaCry virus that infected the U.K.'s hospital system in 2017, a government report said Thursday.

October 11, 2018

Donald Trump to push for federal marijuana reform, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher says

President Trump plans to pursue federally legalizing medical marijuana following next month's midterm races, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, California Republican, said Thursday.

October 11, 2018

Hackers behind Ukrainian blackout linked to crippling NotPetya attack

Clues have been uncovered connecting the same hacking group to separate cyberattacks waged against the Ukrainian energy and financial sectors in 2015 and 2017, respectively, security researchers said Thursday.

October 11, 2018

Customs revises policy permitting Canadian marijuana workers into U.S. ahead of legalization

Canadians involved in the nation's legal marijuana industry will not be automatically barred from entering the United States after all, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has clarified.

October 11, 2018

Government hackers using publicly available tools to wage international espionage, researchers warn

Publicly available hacking tools were leveraged to conduct an international espionage campaign targeting government victims, security researchers warned Wednesday.

October 10, 2018

Americans overwhelmingly concerned with vulnerabilities in election systems prior to midterms: Poll

Nearly 80 percent of Americans are concerned that the nation's voting system might be vulnerable to hackers, according to the results of a nationwide poll conducted ahead of the Nov. 6 midterm elections.

October 10, 2018

Nearly 40 percent of music listeners engage in online copyright infringement: Report

Online copyright infringement remains a persistent issue for recording industries in the U.S. and abroad, an international trade group representing them said in a new report.

October 10, 2018