Andrew Blake

Guccifer 2.0, persona behind leaked Democratic documents, denies Russian ties

A website used to distribute hacked Democratic Party documents for months leading up to last year's election suddenly came to life Thursday for the first time since November, but not to circulate any stolen materials.

January 13, 2017

Marijuana decriminalization proposed by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo

New York should eliminate penalties currently handed down to individuals caught possessing small amounts of marijuana, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday, citing a "dramatic shift in public opinion" evidenced by pot prohibitions being reined in from coast to coast.

January 12, 2017

Edward Snowden, seeking pardon, asks Obama to free Chelsea Manning first

Two of the nation's most infamous intelligence leakers, Edward Snowden and Chelsea Manning, are each seeking a pass from President Obama before he leaves office this month. If he only acts on one, however, Mr. Snowden said the president should pardon the incarcerated WikiLeaks source instead of himself.

January 12, 2017

Seth Rich case: Slain DNC staffer’s dad denies WikiLeaks connection six months after son’s murder

The father of slain Democratic National Committee staffer Seth Rich denied lingering allegations this week about his late son's supposed ties to WikiLeaks, nearly six months after he was posthumously accused of supplying the website with internal DNC emails.

January 12, 2017

Two-thirds of cops support legalizing marijuana: Poll

More than two-thirds of the nation's police officers believe marijuana should be legal for either personal or medical use as lawmakers in state after state continue to advocate for ending the country's prohibition on pot.

January 12, 2017

Donald Trump prevails in defamation suit brought by Cheri Jacobus, GOP consultant

Republican consultant Cheri Jacobus can't sue President-elect Donald Trump for remarks he made about her on Twitter, a New York judge ruled this week, citing "heated rhetoric" during a "particularly raucous" White House race in formally dismissing her defamation suit Tuesday.

January 11, 2017

Mark Warner grills D.C.’s Metro transit system over cybersecurity, warns of ‘grave’ consequences

A recent cyberattack suffered by San Francisco's light-rail system has caused a co-founding member of the Senate Cybersecurity Caucus to question whether the nation's capital could sustain a similar assault.

January 11, 2017

Tom Perez, DNC chair candidate, touts establishing in-house cyber expert after historic hack

The hacking campaign that penetrated the Democratic National Committee prior to last year's presidential race has prompted a candidate vying for the role of DNC chair to call for the creation of an in-house cyber expert position amid renewed discussions involving the intrusion.

January 11, 2017

Air Force adopts new tattoo policy in bid to boost enlistment numbers

The U.S. Air Force will roll back its restrictions on tattoos next month so that would-be recruits can roll back their sleeves without being rejected, military officials announced Tuesday.

January 11, 2017

Armed, anti-Semitic march unlikely to transpire on Martin Luther King Day as planned: Organizer

The publisher of a white supremacist website on Tuesday said "an armed Neo-Nazi march against local Jewish terrorists" planned for Whitefish, Montana, next week may have to be rescheduled after the city made "impossible" new demands days before the event was to take place.

January 10, 2017

New Hampshire considers Russian liquor ban as consequence of hacking campaign

Russian vodka may soon vanish from liquor stores in New Hampshire pending the outcome of legislation proposed Monday by the state Senate's top Democrat.

January 10, 2017

St. Jude, medical-device company, issues security updates to fix hacking-prone pacemakers

Federal regulators told pacemaker patients with certain implantable cardiac devices on Monday to follow instructions needed to fix cybersecurity vulnerabilities found in products made by St. Jude Medical.

January 10, 2017

Jesse Ventura appeal in Chris Kyle defamation case rejected by the Supreme Court

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday said it won't hear arguments brought on behalf of former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura against the estate of slain Navy SEAL and "American Sniper" author Chris Kyle, leaving a lower court's dismissal of a $1.8 million defamation verdict.

January 10, 2017

Donald Trump gets commemorative fare card cover after Metro ticket foul-up

A black-and-white portrait of President-elect Donald Trump will appear on commemorative "sleeves" distributed at subway stations in and around the nation's capital January 20, inauguration and transit officials said this week.

January 7, 2017

Hackers extort $28k ransom from Los Angeles college

The Los Angeles Community College District paid nearly $30,000 to regain access to computer systems seized by a ransomware infection that was discovered as students showed up for the first day of classes, educators said this week.

January 7, 2017

Kate Steinle case: Court says slain woman’s family can sue feds over stolen gun

The family of a San Francisco woman who allegedly at the hands of a Mexican immigrant with a criminal record may pursue negligence claims against the U.S. government, a federal judge ruled Friday.

January 7, 2017

Donald Trump accuses ‘totally embarrassed’ Democrats of harping on Russian hacking claims

President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday continued to dismiss the impact hacking had on his recent White House win, all the while accusing "totally embarrassed" Democrats of refusing to drop lingering claims of state-sponsored inference.

January 7, 2017

Zineb El Rhazoui, Charlie Hebdo writer, leaves magazine over softer stance on radical Islam: Report

Charlie Hebdo journalist Zineb El Rhazoui is parting ways with the French satirical magazine because the publication has dulled its attack against Islamic extremism, she said Friday.

January 7, 2017

Justin Liverman, ‘Crackas with Attitude’ hacking suspect, admits role in targeting U.S. officals

One of two Americans accused of participating in a hacking group that targeted several senior U.S. officials pleaded guilty to their role Friday in federal court.

January 6, 2017

Kate Steinle ‘Kate’s Law’: Congress gets another chance to pass immigration legislation

Kate's Law has been introduced in Congress, giving lawmakers another run at legislation to impose a mandatory minimum five-year prison term on foreigners who re-enter the U.S. after being deported.

January 6, 2017