All posts by Paul Stradling

News

Security Stop-Press : Signed Malicious Windows Drivers Used In Ransomware Attacks

It’s been reported that kernel-mode hardware drivers that have been certified (signed) by Microsoft’s Windows Hardware Developer Program have been used maliciously in post-exploitation cyber attacks, i.e. where the attacker had already gained administrative privileges on compromised systems.

The attacks have been linked to known ransomware and SIM swappers. It is understood that Microsoft has now released security updates to revoke the certificates, has suspended the accounts used to submit the drivers to be signed, and is working on a further detection measures.

News

Tech Tip – Upload An Image To Google To Aid A Search

Google’s Image Search allows you upload an image (or paste in the URL) to identify what a product is and where it can be found on the Web. This could be very useful when searching for Christmas presents. Here’s how it works.

– Go to Google and click on ‘Images’ (top right).

– Click on the camera icon (right hand side of the search box).

– Upload a photo, e.g. of an item of clothing you like the look of but don’t know where to find it.

– Google will use its ‘Lens’ feature to display the exact image or something close to it with a link to click through to website where it can be found.

– It is also possible to add keywords to the search to help get the closest match.

News

Tech News : Starlink Broadband Trial In Cumbria

As part of Project Gigabit, the UK government has announced a trial of Starlink satellite broadband in the Lake District as part of wider plans to connect highly remote areas.

What Is Starlink?  

Starlink, operated by billionaire Elon Musk’s SpaceX company uses a constellation of low orbit satellites around the earth (launched by SpaceX rockets) to provide broadband internet. Starlink provides satellite Internet access coverage to most of planet and is particularly useful for areas where connectivity is unreliable or completely unavailable. Starlink says that users of its satellite broadband can expect to see download speeds between 100 Mb/s and 200 Mb/s and latency as low as 20ms in most locations.

How Do You Get Starlink Broadband? 

Starlink customers are sent a kit which includes the Wi-Fi router, cables and base that enables them to connect to their satellite broadband. Being a satellite connection, however, users need to have a clear view of the sky to connect, plus they need to download the Starlink App to determine their best install location.

Trial Of Starlink 

As part of the UK government’s £5 billion Project Gigabit, launched in March 2021, the project to bring next generation gigabit broadband to more than one million hard to reach homes and businesses, the £100 million trial in Cumbria aims to connect the first 60,000 customers currently in “notspots”. The trial involves a test of 3,000 low-Earth orbit satellites to help bring high speed satellite broadband to what the government describes as “very remote places”. These are the less than one per cent of sites in the UK where it may be too expensive to build a gigabit-capable broadband network to, even with a substantial public subsidy. It has been reported that Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite broadband is to be part of this trial.

Locations For Starlink Trial 

Although the trial will test which satellites can be used to deliver high-speed connections to more than a dozen “very hard to reach” locations, some very specific locations have been explicitly named by the UK government. The government says that as part of the trial, a 12th century abbey in the North Yorkshire Moors National Park, a scout camping site in Snowdonia, a Lake District Mountain rescue base and other remote premises will be the first to have the equipment installed which allows them to link up to orbiting satellites.

Up To Ten Times Faster

The government says that this satellite broadband will not only mean that “very remote places” can get a broadband link, but that the (satellite) broadband is also “up to ten times faster than is currently available to them.” 

Digital Secretary Michelle Donelan said of satellite broadband: “High-speed broadband beamed to earth from space could be the answer to the connectivity issues suffered by people in premises stuck in the digital slow lane.” 

What Does This Mean For Your Business?

Broadband and Wi-Fi are now essential services for business, and organisations would obviously welcome any improvement in broadband speeds in the UK as soon as possible. It would undoubtedly help UK companies to become more competitive and would boost the economy.

It has long been known, however, that there are many ‘not spots’ and rural and remote areas in the UK that are at a disadvantage because the ground-based infrastructure isn’t there and which may prove difficult, costly, and time-consuming to install broadband by cable/fibre. It would seem to make sense, therefore, that satellite broadband (provided there’s a clear view of the sky for users) could be one way that very remote places could be quickly linked up to a connection that may be faster than many users in cities and towns enjoy. The project in Cumbria is part of a wider trial to test the reliability of satellite technology to bring high-speed connections to the most hard-to-reach parts of the UK so it remains to be seen how it performs and what the costs and other challenges are as to whether it is rolled-out on a larger scale to other areas of the UK.

News

Featured Article : Twitter Roundup

Here, we look at more of the rapid changes at Twitter, what the reaction has been, how this has affected the platform, plus the wider implications.

All Change 

The beginning of Twitter’s (current) saga was when the world’s richest man, Tesla and SpaceX founder, Elon Musk bought shares in the social media giant back in January, followed by on/off April to October negotiations which resulted in Musk buying and taking over the social media giant. What followed has been some major, high-profile changes with Twitter’s workforce and practices, and the rules for users, how the platform plans to generate revenue, and how users have reacted to the changes.

Summary 

As expected with Musk, ideas, changes, and polls among users have come thick and fast and have not always been popular. Here is a brief summary of some of the standout events to date:

– Musk’s $44 billion takeover leading to ultimatum’s given to staff over committing to new working conditions. This led to resignations and mass job cuts – Twitter slashed roughly 50 per cent of its workforce (reports showed Musk’s leadership sacking an estimated 80 per cent of contract employees without formal notice).

– Twitter top executives sacked, including Chief Executive Parag Agrawal, Chief Financial Officer Ned Segal and legal affairs and policy chief Vijaya Gadd.

– Fears that Twitter could change for the worse under Musk’s ownership, i.e. reinstating unpopular banned users and controversial figures and allowing the wrong kind of ‘free speech.’

– Thousands of (outsourced) content moderators dropped, leading to fears of a drop in quality and possible rise of misinformation.

– Elon Musk warning that Twitter could face bankruptcy unless more (non-advertising) revenue could be generated.

– The Blue service/Blue Tick service is announced by Musk as new revenue generator and as a way to reduce the platform’s reliance on advertising and tackle the problem of fake / bot accounts, and parody accounts. The key elements of the Blue subscription service are a verifying tick next to the name in the user’s profile and the ability to edit tweets up to five times within the first 30 minutes of tweeting.

– A chaotic period after the announcement of the Blue services when (for example) a wave of blue tick verified (yet fake) accounts impersonating influential brands and celebrities tweeting fake news plus having to be suspended and removed. Also, there was confusion over the introduction of new grey “official” badges instead of blue ticks on some high-profile accounts, which were then suddenly scrapped, also reports that US far-right activists have been able to purchase Twitter blue ticks.

– Elon Musk announcing that all but “exceptional” Twitter employees need to come back to working in the office for at least 40 hours per week or their resignation will be accepted.

– Reports that Twitter users are leaving the platform in protest over Musk’s ownership and moving to competing, and decentralised social network ‘Mastodon.’

– America’s Federal Trade Commission warning that “no chief executive or company is above the law,” fears over Twitter’s approach to security, and questions about this in relation to possible Saudi involvement in the Twitter takeover.

More Controversial Changes 

Some of the more controversial announcements from Twitter have included:

– Musk announcing an amnesty to suspended Twitter accounts (after taking an opinion poll).

– Former US President Donald Trump being allowed back on Twitter (an invitation which he has declined).

– An announcement that Twitter is no longer enforcing its COVID-19 misinformation policy.

Reactions 

There have, of course, been many reactions from companies and users to the happenings at Twitter since Musk’s takeover. Some of the main ones include:

– Apple and Google reportedly threatening to drop Twitter from their app stores (something Musk denied).

– Apple and Amazon (major sources of advertising revenue for Twitter) stopping (which some deny bout Amazon) and then resuming advertising on Twitter. It was reported that Musk met Apple CEO Tim Cook at Apple HQ over the “misunderstanding.”

– Twitter losing more than 50 per cent of its advertising partners and a number of large companies pausing advertising on Twitter since Musk’s takeover, e.g. General Mills Inc, Audi, Volkswagen, General Motors, and more.

– Reports (Mikmak) of Twitter suffering a massive 68 per cent drop in media traffic (the number of times people click on an ad). This is so serious because Twitter currently derives 90 per cent of its revenue from advertising.

– As well as many normal users leaving, a large number of high-profile celebrities have very publicly announced that they’re leaving/have left Twitter since Musk’s takeover. These include Elton John, Jim Carrey, Whoopi Goldberg, and Toni Braxton among others.

Where? 

Reported alternatives to Twitter that appear to have picked up Twitter leavers include:

– Discord.

– Mastodon. An estimated 18,000 people signed up for Mastodon accounts at the end of October.

– Hive Social, reportedly experiencing rapid growth since Musk’s Twitter takeover.

– Post.

What Does This Mean For Your Business? 

Huge changes have taken place at Twitter since Musk’s takeover. Perhaps of most significance is the uneasiness that brands and Twitter’s big advertisers (Twitter’s main source of revenue) felt about possible negative associations with (for example) the ‘wrong kind’ of free speech, banned and unpopular figures returning, an apparent lack of moderators (many of whom have been sacked) and the chaos around the backlash and bogus accounts.

Notably, although Musk has remained publicly as outspoken, the considerable threat of Apple dropping its advertising prompted Musk to go to Apple HQ to meet with its CEO. Other large brand advertisers threatening to stop or suspending advertising has shown how reliant Twitter is on them, how brands (including celebrities) run a mile from negative associations, and how much Twitter can be hurt in this way due to its current reliance on advertising for revenue (90 per cent of its revenue) and the need for a credible revenue-generating alternative (the blue tick system was publicly abused by users) .

Twitter’s loss of users over Musk’s ownership, decisions, and style has meant, however, a big boost for alternative platforms, e.g. Mastodon and Discord. The Twitter saga is by no means over and for now it looks as though offering incentives to advertising partners to balance the recent loss of revenue is going to a focus for the platform, which now appears to be struggling more than it was when Musk took over. We shall see.

News

Tech News : Online Safety Bill Amendment Gets Mixed Reaction

The Government’s decision to amend the Online Safety Bill to allow ‘legal but harmful’ content has received a mixed reaction with criticism coming from The Samaritans.

What Is The Online Safety Bill? 

The UK government’s Online Safety Bill, originally proposed by former PM Teresa May, is (draft) legislation that’s designed to place a ‘duty of care’ on internet companies which host user-generated content in order to limit the spread of illegal content on these services.

The idea of the Bill is to prevent the spread of illegal content and activity (e.g. images of child abuse, terror material, and hate crimes), as well as to protect children from harmful material. Until the recent amendment it was also designed to protect adults from legal but harmful content.

Where? 

The Online Safety Bill applies to social media platforms, video-sharing platforms, search engines, plus other tech services, and requires them to implement systems and processes to remove illegal content as soon as they become aware of it. The Bill also requires these services to take additional proactive measures with regards to the most harmful ‘priority’ forms of online illegal content.

The Amendment – Legal But Harmful Material OK? 

Following five months of delays, plus a return to Parliament, Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan confirmed an amendment to the Bill which shifts the emphasis away from general safety towards child safety. The amendment means that social media sites will no longer need to remove material designated “legal but harmful.” 

Michelle Donelan said: “Any incentives for social media firms to over-remove people’s legal online content will be taken out of the Online Safety Bill. Firms will still need to protect children and remove content that is illegal or prohibited in their terms of service, however the Bill will no longer define specific types of legal content that companies must address.”  She added: “This removes any influence future governments could have on what private companies do about legal speech on their sites, or any risk that companies are motivated to take down legitimate posts to avoid sanctions.” 

Why? 

The government says that the amendment has been made over fears that the Bill would stifle free speech and created a quasi-legal category between illegal and legal where sizable platforms and companies would have to remove both illegal content, plus any content that had been named as legal but potentially harmful. This echoes concerns by free speech campaigners that the Bill could allow the government or tech platforms to censor content.

Replaced With What? 

The government says the legal but harmful measures will be replaced with “triple shield” which it says will “strike the right balance with its protections for free speech.”  This will take the form of “new duties which strengthen the Bill’s free speech requirements on major online platforms” which it says will make them more accountable for their policies. The new duties will prohibit online platforms from removing or restricting user-generated content, or suspending or banning users, where the content doesn’t actually go against the platform’s terms of service or the law.

Concerns 

The amendment has been met with mixed reactions. Although there is broad agreement that the Bill’s emphasis on protecting children is a good thing, concern has been expressed by some groups. For example, concern has been expressed by the Samaritans in an open letter online which says that: “We have been pleased to see continued commitment from the Government to protecting vulnerable children as it considers modifying the Bill. But susceptibility to harm from suicide and self-harm content does not end when people reach the age of 18. Anyone, including young adults aged 18-24, can be just as vulnerable to harm from this type of content”. 

What Does This Mean For Your Business? 

In practical terms, businesses like social media platforms will now need to do less assessing, restricting, and removing of content and will need to relate judgement of content to whether its legal or prohibited in their terms of service. Other work may need to be done by platforms too, e.g. looking more closely at their terms of service, being required to show how they enforce their user age limits, answering to a toughened regulator, being more transparent about how their algorithms work and publishing details of when the regulator Ofcom has taken action against them. Although the amendment still provides protection for children, there is an argument, as made by the Samaritans, that young people over 18 need protection too from certain content.

That said, the change should please free speech campaigners, plus there are other aspects to the Bill that should provide a wide range of projections in law, particularly for young people from many types of harmful content and online behaviours.

News

Tech Insight : Digital Dosh

With the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) launching India’s first pilot for a retail digital rupee (e₹-R/eINR/E-Rupee) this month, we look at what this means and what the benefits could be.

Why?  

The pilot will help to decide whether India could intrpduce one of the world’s first nationwide digital currencies. It is thought that having a digital currency could boost India’s digital economy and, thanks to blockchain and the other technolgies that it’s built on, could create a more efficient and cheaper currency management system.

What Is Digital Currency? 

A digtital currency such as the one in the Indian pilot scheme is known as a central bank digital currency (CBDC). This means that it is a type of money / fiat currency issued by central bank that exists only in digital form (instead of printing money) for people to use as legal tender. This is different to a cryptocurrencies which are digital assets on a decentralised (blockchain) network.

How Will It Work? 

Banks will offer users a digital wallet which can be stored on a mobile phone or other device. Digital tokens, in the same denominations as the the physical rupee can be stored in the digital wallet. Users can then transact the token through the digital wallet (offered by the banks in the pilot) person-to-person and person-to-merchant using the QR codes displayed in the merchants’ stores. A digital Rupee, however, is not paid any interest by the central bank although deposits held in the bank can be converted into digital rupees and vice-versa.

Eight Banks 

The pilot will involve eight banks in total.The first phase will invlove four banks: State Bank of India, ICICI Bank, Yes Bank, and IDFC First Bank. The next phase will invlove Bank of Baroda, Union Bank of India, HDFC Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank.

Cities 

The pilot will take place in the following Indian cities: Mumbai, New Delhi, Bengaluru, and Bhubaneswar, and later in Ahmedabad, Gangtok, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Indore, Kochi, Lucknow, Patna, and Shimla.

When Could It Be Launched If The Pilot Is Succesful? 

RBI said at the beginning of the year that it would introduce a digital currency in 2022 or 2023.

Benefits 

Some of the benefits of having a digital Rupee could include:

– Convenience and speed for users and merchants and liberate merchants from the cost and trouble of having to go to the back with cash.

– Propelling India’s transition towards becoming a cashless society.

– Freeing banks from having to maintain sufficient cash deposits before they expand their loan books and from the risk of bank-runs which can result from unrestrained expansion of loan books.

Drawbacks 

Some drawbacks of a digital rupee system could include:

– Disruption to the banking system. For example, when interest rates are low, people could convert their bank deposits into digital currencies which could cause cash holdings of banks to drop and hinder the banks’ capacity to create loans.

– Centralised implementation rather than the decentralisation the cryptocurrencies have.

– Possible privacy issues / and/or possibilities of security problems.

– Take-up, inertia (training ) etc.

What Does This Mean For Your Business? 

Particularly since the pandemic, developed countries are moving more towards becoming cashless societies anyway and India sees a digital currency controlled by its banks as a way to speed this along and boost its digital economy. Blockchain has proven itself to be a very valuable technology in many industries and especially for cryptocurrencies, and now for digital currencies.

India is not the first country to try it (China has one and other world banks are running trials) but digital currencies look as though they could benefit consumers (convenience), merchants (cost savings and increased efficiencies) and banks (reduced risk and more control). It remains to be seen what the final outcome of the pilot will be but India appears to be looking to follow China in introducing a CBDC quickly if the signs are good.

News

Sustainability : Hydrogen Aircraft Fuel & 2050 Net Zero

FlyZero’s and UK Aerospace Technology Institute’s (ATI) study has concluded that green liquid hydrogen powered aircraft could deliver the net-zero 2050 target for aviation.

Two Technologies 

The 12-month study results suggests that aviation can achieve net-zero by 2050 through the development of both sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and green liquid hydrogen technologies.

What Is Green Liquid Hydrogen? 

Liquid hydrogen aviation fuel is produced by splitting water to create a liquid hydrogen fuel that gives no CO2 emissions and eliminates the most harmful non-CO2 emissions associated with current kerosene fuels, including carbon monoxide, methane, soot particles, and oxidised sulphur species. Liquid hydrogen fuel only emits vapour and near-zero nitrogen oxides making it a truly green.

What Is Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF)? 

Low-carbon sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) refers to fuel made from renewable biomass and waste resources. Like liquid hydrogen, these have the potential to deliver the performance of petroleum-based jet fuel but with only a fraction of its carbon footprint.

What Difference Could It Make? 

In environmental terms, according to the ATI, if midsize hydrogen-powered aircraft were introduced by 2035 and a narrowbody aircraft by 2037, and if half the commercial fleet were hydrogen-powered by 2050, aviation’s carbon emissions could be reduced by massive four gigatons (Gt) up to 2050. That’s the equivalent to four years of total global aviation carbon emissions. By 2060, the emissions could be reduced by 14 Gt.

In performance terms, FlyZero recently gave the example that, green liquid hydrogen could power a midsize aircraft with 280 passengers from London to San Francisco directly, or from London to Auckland with just one stop.

Opportunities For UK Businesses 

Following the study’s findings, the ATI has highlighted how the UK could build on its decades of expertise in aerospace innovation introduce a new generation of liquid hydrogen-powered aircraft, working with global OEMs, governments, and regulatory bodies.

The ATI says that “with targeted investment in technology, the UK could grow its market share in civil aerospace from 12% today to 19% by 2050, increasing the sector’s gross value added to the economy from £11bn to £36bn and the number of aerospace jobs from 116,000 to 154,000”. 

Cost 

FlyZero has also highlighted a cost benefit to liquid hydrogen and SAF by noting how by the mid-2030s “liquid hydrogen will be cheaper than the most widely available sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), power-to-liquid”. 

What Does This Mean For Your Organisation? 

Aviation contributes around 4 per cent to all human-induced global warming (Klöwer et al), more than most countries, and current kerosene-based aviation fuels er responsible for global aviation emissions of around 1 billion tons of CO2 per year! Clearly, this is not sustainable and is very damaging environmentally and means that, at this rate, if things stay the same, a UK aviation net-zero by 2050 looks impossible. The potential promise of green hydrogen, however, if green hydrogen aircraft are introduced within the next 12 to 15 years could be an effective way to dramatically reduced CO2 emissions, cleaning up the UK aviation industry. If the FlyZero/ATI study findings are also to be accepted, a big switch to green hydrogen could bring down costs (liquid hydrogen becoming cheaper than kerosene fuels) and maintain performance. For UK businesses, investment in the new fuel technologies – green hydrogen and SAF – could bring opportunities, technology, and a significant growth in market share in civil aerospace. This could treble the sector’s gross value added to the economy and seriously increase the number of aerospace jobs. This could have positive knock-on effect to the UK economy and the UK’s standing in the world as regards the changes in the global aviation market.

News

Security Stop-Press : Microsoft 365 Banned In German Schools

The German Data Protection Conference (DSK) has banned the use of Microsoft Office 365 in German schools over an alleged lack of transparency about how personal data is processed, and the potential for third-party access to it.

The ban has also been issued because the DSK believes the use O365 is not legally compliant with GDPR, i.e. it may not be possible for outside regulators to assess what information Microsoft is collecting, and how it is using the data.

Microsoft says that the DSK’s concerns don’t adequately take into account of changes it’s already made to its systems; transparency standards already exceed others in the sector, plus it will provide documentation and more information relating to transparency.

News

Tech Tip – Find Images With Transparent Backgrounds In Google

If you need to quickly find images on any subject which already have a transparent background, there’s a quick and easy way to do it with Google’s Image Search. Here’s how:

– Go to Google and click on ‘Images’ (top right) for Image Search.

– Type in what you’re looking for, e.g. Christmas, and hit return or click on the search symbol.

– Click on ‘Tools’ (top, right-hand-side and below the search box).

– In the ‘Colour’ dropdown, select ‘Transparent’.

– You will then see all the images related to your search term that have a transparent background.

News

Tech News : Robots Now Legally Lethal

The announcement by San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors to allow the city’s police to use robots that can deploy “deadly force” in the fight against crime has been met with concern.

What Killer Robots? 

According to a San Francisco Police Department policy document, the city has essentially approved the use of 17 robots, 5 of which aren’t currently functioning. The remotely controlled, ground operated robots include (for example) REMOTEC robots that can climb stairs (such as in apartment buildings), can carry tools and accessories, plus have an arm that can lift weights from 65 to 85 pounds. Their stated purpose is to support officers in “training and simulations, criminal apprehensions, critical incidents, exigent circumstances, executing a warrant or during suspicious device assessments”.  

Crucially, however, the SFPD policy document outlines how: “Robots will only be used as a deadly force option when risk of loss of life to members of the public or officers is imminent and outweighs any other force option available to SFPD.” 

Bad Memories – New York 

The announcement has re-ignited fears and concerns expressed back in May 2021 when, on the other side of the US in New York, ‘Digidog’ the police robot dog with a militarised appearance was deployed to an incident in the Bronx. Footage published online caused alarm and criticism among members of the public which was heightened at the time by the high-profile incidents of police killings of black citizens, and the resulting protests. On seeing DigiDog, comparisons were made with fictional characters like the Terminator and Robocop and this led to comments that the robot was ‘creepy’ and like something from a dystopian future.

Killed By Robot 

Robots have been used with lethal force by police before. Back in 2016 in Dallas, police used a bomb mounted on a robot to kill a sniper gunman who had shot five police officers during a protest.

SFPD does not currently have robots equipped with lethal force. However, if/when deployed, it appears the new robots that SFPD plan to use are intended only to be used in extreme circumstances to tackle similar situations i.e., “potentially be equipped with explosive charges to breach fortified structures containing violent, armed, or dangerous subjects”.

Objections 

Despite assurances that such robots would only be used in very specific situations there has, of course been criticism of SFPD’s policy decision, including:

– The use of robots is dehumanising, make humans feel more distant from the use of force and its consequences, and from the emotional impact of killing / taking a life. This could make it easier to make decisions to use lethal force.

– Both Amnesty International and the campaign group ‘Stop Killer Robots’ are vocal and active in their opposition to the use of ‘killer robots’ and autonomous weapons systems wherever they are used or planned.

– Their use could be normalised and gradually broadened until they are deployed in situations where they don’t need to be, i.e. their use could constitute excessive force.

– Mistakes could still be made, and innocent people could be killed or injured with robot attacks, e.g. as they have been with drones.

– This could be a tool that begs to be used and police may choose to use it when they should be looking for other options.

– It could be more of a threat to San Franciso’s most vulnerable people and ethnic communities.

– It could be a step towards a dystopian future.

What Does This Mean For Your Business? 

SFPD have assured people that these robots would only be used in extreme situations where the lives of innocent people and first responders are in danger and where other options are not viable, e.g. incidents like mass shootings. Also, this is a policy change announcement and there are currently no robots being used by the SFPD that have lethal force capabilities. Basic remote-controlled robots have proven their use around the world for bomb disposal and suchlike. The new robots planned by SFPD are also remote-controlled relatively basic models and a far cry from the idea of an autonomous, humanoid robot such as Robocop. However, many valid fears have been expressed and the thought of robots on the streets, controlled by the police and equipped to kill is unnerving to many people and could be seen as a first step along the road to a frightening future if not regulated properly or used exactly as intended.