Andrew Blake

Breach of dating app for people with HIV highlights risk of lawsuits seen by security researchers

The CEO of a dating app for people with HIV has rejected claims that a researcher was threatened with the potentially deadly virus after disclosing a serious security flaw that compromised the details of thousands of users -- but admits he's willing to take legal action against the website that reported the breach.

December 17, 2015

N.Y. agrees to revamp solitary confinement policies across state prisons

New York state has agreed to make major changes to its solitary confinement policies in order to resolve a 2012 class-action suit brought on behalf of inmates who called the isolation practice inhumane.

December 17, 2015

Jason Van Dyke, Chicago cop, charged with six counts of murder in death of teenager

Jason Van Dyke, the white Chicago police officer charged last month in the death of a black teenager, Laquan McDonald, has been formally indicted on seven counts related to the fatal October 2014 shooting.

December 17, 2015

Judge Carolyn Walker-Diallo threatened after taking oath of office with Koran: reports

Carolyn Walker-Diallo, one of the newest judges in New York City, has been receiving threats after taking her oath of office last week with her hand placed on a Koran, police sources said this week.

December 17, 2015

Obama admin. tells Supreme Court to reject pot suit brought against Colorado by Nebraska, Oklahoma

The Obama administration has advised the Supreme Court not to take on a legal challenge brought against Colorado's lax marijuana laws by neighboring states Nebraska and Oklahoma.

December 17, 2015

Facebook, Twitter, Google adopt hate speech rules in Germany

Facebook, Twitter and Google all said this week that they'll implement new measures in Germany to make sure content considered to be hate speech is erased within 24 hours of being brought to their attention.

December 16, 2015

Brig. Gen. Diana Holland named first female West Point commandant of cadets

Brig. Gen. Diana Holland has been selected as the next commandant of cadets at the Military Academy at West Point and will become the first woman to assume that role when she's officially sworn early next month.

December 16, 2015

Dating app company threatens researcher with HIV after disclosing damning security flaw

A misconfiguration recently made public the names, contact details and other information pertaining to thousands of users who had downloaded a dating app aimed at people with HIV. The company responsible has since fixed the error, but not before threatening to infect with the disease a security researcher who tried to help.

December 16, 2015

National Guard plans to activate cyber squads across 23 states

Cyber squads administered by the National Guard are now scheduled to be operating in 23 states across the country by 2020 as the Defense Department ramps-up its efforts to protect military and government computer networks inside America's borders.

December 16, 2015

CISA cyber bill squeezed into omnibus spending plan

Lawmakers have contentious cybersecurity legislation into an omnibus spending plan put together Tuesday in hopes of having the federal government funded through next fiscal year.

December 16, 2015

Xi Jinping of China advocates for cyber sovereignty during World Internet Conference address

Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed during a summit in Zhejiang province on Wednesday that countries should respect one another's "cyber sovereignty" and avoid prescribing online policies beyond their own borders.

December 16, 2015

EU approves data protection laws; U.S. companies risk hefty fines for noncompliance

The European Union on Tuesday agreed as expected to adopt a suite of new digital privacy rules that are poised to put a dent in U.S.-based companies that make collecting vast amounts of customer data a big part of their business.

December 15, 2015

Tom Smith, California pastor, shot by instructor during gun safety course

The pastor at a church in Modesto, California was recovering this week from a gunshot to the waist he received while participating in recent firearms safety class.

December 15, 2015

Encryption among concerns raised by senator in probe of San Bernardino shooting

As questions remain unanswered about any plotting done in advance of the Dec. 2 shooting rampage in San Bernardino, the chair of the Senate Homeland Security Committee has asked the Department of Justice to disclose whether the suspects may have relied on encryption to obscure their plans.

December 15, 2015

Trump rally turns heated amid audience scuffles, Nazi salute

As Donald Trump took to the stage Monday for a campaign rally in Las Vegas on the eve of the year's last presidential debate, the event briefly went off the rails when supporters began engaging with activists on hand to protest the Republican Party front-runner.

December 15, 2015

Tennessee teens do jail time for sagging pants

Sagging pants sent two Tennessee high schoolers to the county jail this month after their low-riding wardrobe selections left them being charged with indecent exposure.

December 15, 2015

Death of Alonzo Smith, teacher’s aide, ruled a homicide by D.C. medical examiner

Alonzo Smith, a 27-year-old teacher's assistant who was pronounced dead last month after being discovered unconscious and handcuffed in a southeast D.C. apartment complex, died as the result of a homicide, the city's chief medical examiner said Monday.

December 14, 2015

Twitter begins warning users of attacks from state-sponsored hackers

Twitter has begun notifying account holders who the company believes are being targeted by state-sponsored hackers, following in the footsteps of Google and Facebook as government-hired cyber spies continue to set their sights on social media.

December 14, 2015

Apple computers, iPhones increasingly targeted by hackers: report

Hackers have turned up the heat on Apple, with cyber experts saying attacks against iPhones and other devices sold by the Cupertino, California-based corporation have surged, a new report reveals.

December 14, 2015

Marijuana proponents threaten D.C. Council with term-limits as lawmakers ponder new restrictions

Marijuana advocates in the District of Columbia on Thursday threatened to work toward taking local lawmakers out of office if the D.C. Council continues with an effort to establish new restrictions affecting the city's recently enacted pot laws.

December 11, 2015