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☆ Arizona man accused of making child mutilation videos for online terror groups, feds say
▼ + stars: | 2024-12-13 | by ( Antonio Planas | Antonio Planas Is A Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

An Arizona man was arrested this week for allegedly producing child sex abuse materials, in which he coerced minors to self-mutilate, as part of his efforts with online terror groups, federal prosecutors said. Prosecutors allege Martin is a member of the violent terror networks known as 764 and CVLT. The mutilation acts are then photographed, video recorded or streamed online and shared with other members of the groups, prosecutors said. Martin, who claimed online he was the owner of the online terror groups, taught other members how to extort victims and proclaiming himself as the “king of extortion,” prosecutors said. In September 2022, Martin produced child sex abuse material on Discord, an online chat and gaming platform, prosecutors said.

Persons: Baron Martin, Martin, cyberstalking, wasn’t, “, National Security Matthew G, Olsen, ” Organizations: U.S . Department of Justice, cyberstalking, Prosecutors, National Security Locations: Arizona, Tucson , Arizona, United States

☆ South Korea could give those who watch deepfake porn 3 years in prison or a fine of up to $23K
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-30 | by ( Joshua Nelken-Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

South Korea has passed a law banning the possession and viewing of deepfake porn. The majority of deepfake porn videos online feature South Korean singers and actresses. The new legislation aims to expand on the earlier law by targeting the consumers of deepfake porn, as South Korea grapples with sexually explicit AI-generated content. According to AFP, authorities last month discovered a vast network of these deepfake porn chatrooms, which sometimes targeted school and university staff and students. Security Hero said that in 2023, the total number of deepfake videos online was 95,820, with 98% of those being pornographic in nature.

Persons: —, Sens, Ted Cruz, Amy Klobuchar Organizations: Service, Reuters, South Korea grapples, Security, AFP, Telegram Locations: Korea, Korean, South Korea, US, South Korean, Seoul, chatrooms

☆ Mark Cuban got the idea for a $5.7 billion business in a California Pizza Kitchen
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-22 | by ( Megan Sauer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

That's where Mark Cuban and his college friend Todd Wagner were in 1995, eating lunch and talking about Indiana University basketball. "There's got to be a way that we can listen to Indiana University basketball ... over the internet," Cuban recalled the two of them saying, during a MasterClass course released Thursday. Cuban and Wagner sold the company to Yahoo for $5.7 billion in stock in 1999. It remains Cuban's most lucrative entrepreneurial endeavor, topping the $6 million sale of his first company, software business Microsolutions, in 1990. Disclosure: CNBC owns the exclusive off-network cable rights to "Shark Tank," which features Mark Cuban as a panelist.

Persons: Mark Cuban, Todd Wagner, There's, Cuban, Wagner, Broadcast.com, he's Organizations: Ivy League, Indiana University basketball, Yahoo, Hoosiers, Cost, CNBC Locations: Dallas, Bloomington , Indiana, Broadcast.com, Cuban

☆ Men are turning to OnlyFans for emotional connection amid a loneliness epidemic
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Marta Biino | Madeline Berg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +15 min

"They can go to Pornhub and get naked people and sexual videos," Rae Richmond, another content creator, said. And when he chats with Farrah, an OnlyFans creator, things rarely get sexual. Some think the OnlyFans relationships help, while others think they can make people lonelier. LiensueGenuine connection can be an unintended consequence for creators, tooDespite the transactional nature of OnlyFans relationships, a real sense of companionship can develop on both ends. Sweetheart said she hadn't been on any dates since she began creating OnlyFans content over three years ago.

Persons: Cherie DeVille, Simon, DeVille, he'd, I'd, who's, they'd, Rae Richmond, Walter's, Farrah, Walter, OnlyFans, Robert Weiss, Albert L, Ortega, Amber, Aston Martin, Keily Blair, sexting, she'd, Amber Sweetheart OnlyFans, Jade Nicole, Jade, she's, Jade Nicole Jade Nicole Mark, Liensue, Sue, Elaina St James, Tom, St James, haven't, Weiss, Ronald Levant —, Katherine Frank, Levant, Marie Lippmann, you've, I've, hadn't, She's, Candice Organizations: Google, Business, NFL, Gallup, Pew, Getty, University of Akron, Strip Club, California State University, Chico Locations: Italy, OnlyFans, New York

CNN —The Chinese government has built up the world’s largest known online disinformation operation and is using it to harass US residents, politicians, and businesses—at times threatening its targets with violence, a CNN review of court documents and public disclosures by social media companies has found. Victims face a barrage of tens of thousands of social media posts that call them traitors, dogs, and racist and homophobic slurs. While tech and social media companies have shut down thousands of accounts targeting these victims, they’re outpaced by a slew of new accounts emerging virtually every day. As part of a mission “to manipulate public perceptions of [China], the Group uses its misattributed social media accounts to threaten, harass and intimidate specific victims,” the complaint states. In the past, the Spamouflage network mostly focused on issues domestically relevant to China.

Persons: –, Xi Jinping, Biden, Mike Gallagher, Chen Pokong, ”, Chen, “, Spamouflage’s, Liu Pengyu, ” Liu, Jiayang, Darren Linvill, hasn’t, Fan, Communist Party playbook, Mandiant, Nancy Pelosi, ” Ben Nimmo, George Floyd’s, Ben Nimmo, Lindsay Gorman, Gorman, ” Linvill, Linvill, Spamouflage, Jiajun Qiu, Qiu, ” Qiu Organizations: CNN, US State Department, FBI, Communist Party, Meta, Google, ”, CCP, US Department of Justice, Department, DOJ, China’s Ministry of Public Security, Group, New Yorker, telltale, Media, Clemson University, Capitol, Department of Homeland Security, Marshall Fund’s Alliance, Securing Democracy, YouTube Locations: United States, Beijing, San Francisco, China “, New York, China, New York City, America, Washington, Hong Kong, US, Texas, Virginia, Manassas , Virginia

☆ Millennials: It's ok to mourn the death of social media
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-07 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Wired writes about how first-gen social media users have "nowhere to go." AdvertisementAdvertisementIn Wired, Jason Parham writes about how first-gen social media users have nowhere to go. Indeed, millennials have soured on the big social platforms: Facebook, Twitter, and even Instagram feel dead. He points out that "first-gen" users (like me) were part of a "golden age of connectivity," and for those years, it really was exciting. In time, we used social media to remake civic lifeI'm sad that golden age is over, and I'm not sure we'll ever experience anything like it again.

Persons: —, Jason Parham, millennials, Parham, I'm Organizations: Wired, Twitter, Service, Facebook

☆ WhatsApp clampdown highlights video call compliance threat for finance firms
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-18 | by ( Sinead Cruise | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

Video calls are broadly considered proxies for face-to-face meetings and therefore are currently subject to little or no formal record-keeping obligations. At least two major global banks are now recording Zoom calls, said sources with knowledge of the matter, who declined to be named because the information is not public. One bank is recording Zoom calls undertaken by certain staff, including traders, while the other is recording all Zoom calls so content can be reviewed later if needed. FINRA declined to comment on how many firms were subject to the rule or whether the rule also extended to video calls. Video calls pose "unique risks" and technology needed to efficiently screen video calls is not widely used, said Matt Smith, CEO of communications surveillance firm SteelEye.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Brad Levy, Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Matthew Nunan, Gibson, Dunn, Morgan Stanley, Sarah Pritchard, Claire Garrett, Michael Watling, Seward, FINRA, Matt Smith, Ryan, Yonk, Symphony's Levy, Chris Prentice, Michelle Price, Huw Jones, Sharon Singleton Organizations: REUTERS, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Finance, Reuters, U.S, EMEA, Microsoft, Britain's, Authority, HSBC, Bloomberg, U.S . Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Employees, American Institute for Economic Research, Washington D.C, Thomson Locations: Marsh, U.S, New York, Washington, London

☆ Spanish Prosecutor to Probe AI-Generated Images of Naked Minors
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

MADRID (Reuters) - A Spanish prosecutor's office said on Monday it would probe whether AI-generated images of naked teenaged girls, allegedly created and shared by their peers in southwestern Spain, constituted a crime. The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation warned in June that criminals were increasingly using artificial intelligence to create sexually explicit images to intimidate and extort victims. In Madrid, a court is investigating a similar case involving naked pictures of two young victims they claim were generated by AI, police said. In Extremadura, teenagers aged between 13 and 15 have been identified as being responsible for generating and sharing the images, according to the police report. Under Spanish law, minors under 14 cannot be charged, but their cases are sent to child protection services, which can force them to take part in rehabilitation courses.

Persons: Miriam al Adib, Al Adib, Fernando Miro, Elena Rodriguez, Emma Pinedo, David Latona, Charlie Devereux, William Maclean Organizations: U.S . Federal Bureau of Investigation, Reuters, Miguel Hernandez University, of Europe Locations: MADRID, Spain, Almendralejo, Extremadura, Madrid

☆ Wagner fighters are furious and vowing vengeance after their leader Prigozhin's presumed death in a plane crash
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Thibault Spirlet | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

It came after the apparent death of their leader Yevgeny Prigozhin in a plane crash. One said: "There's a lot of talk right now about what the Wagner Group will do in this situation. An unnamed former senior Kremlin official told The Financial Times that the plane was shot down by Russian air defense batteries. AdvertisementAdvertisement"Obviously this was an order," another unnamed source close to the Russian defense ministry told the outlet. Before Wednesday's plane crash, Prigozhin was last seen in a clip in an unspecified African country, where he said the Wagner group was conducting reconnaissance and search operations.

Persons: Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin, of, Yevgeny Viktorovich Prigozhin, Mozhem Obysanit, Sergei Shoigu, Prigozhin, they've, Alex Kokcharov, Dr Matthew Ford, Kokcharov Organizations: Service, Grey, Wagner Group, Defense, Kremlin, Financial Times, P Global Market Intelligence, West, Swedish Defence University Locations: Wall, Silicon, Russia, of Russia, St, Petersburg, Washington ,, Ukraine, Belarus, Africa

☆ The worst Pentagon leak in years may have started in a gamer chatroom, where people weirdly keep posting classified documents trying to win arguments on the internet
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The leaked Pentagon documents may have started in an online chatroom for gamers. It's not the first time users have leaked classified or sensitive information to the internet to settle a debate. "Here, have some leaked documents," the user wrote in response to the discussion. In recent years, players of "War Thunder" — a combat video game — have shared highly sensitive information to various chatrooms on multiple occasions, including content about tanks, fighter jets, and missiles. In one case, a user posted information from the manual of an F-16 fighter jet, as well as content about the AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile.

☆ Leaked Pentagon documents appeared on a 'Minecraft' Discord server weeks before officials knew about a breach: report
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Leaked Pentagon documents appeared on Discord servers weeks before the received official attention. At least 10 documents appeared on the server "Minecraft Earth Map" on March 4, Bellingcat reported. At least 10 such documents were posted in March on a Discord server dedicated to the "Minecraft " video game, Bellingcat investigator Aric Toler reported. Wow_Mao told The New York Times he does not spend much time managing his Discord server but admits he could have moderated it better. The analyst cited conversations with several members of the Discord server, who sent him images of the documents.

☆ Crypto is banned in China, but Binance employees and support volunteers tell people how to bypass the ban
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Rohan Goswami | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +18 min

The messages CNBC reviewed come from accounts identified as Binance employees or Binance-trained volunteers known as "Angels." Whatever the method, Binance's Chinese users take on a significant risk: In China, crypto exchanges have been outlawed since 2017, while crypto itself was outlawed in 2021. But Chinese customers have continued to seek ways to trade on Binance, which include using instructions provided by employees and volunteers. "'Binance does not offer a 'Binance Chinese Android app," a spokesperson said. In addition, hours after Binance responded to CNBC, messages apeared on Twitter suggesting that some customers' Binance debit cards had been frozen.

☆ Ukrainian troops are calling the US military in the middle of shootouts with Russia for help fixing their artillery
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The US military is leading a team that is helping to repair Ukraine's military hardware over the phone. Ukrainian troops, meanwhile, are pushing artillery systems to the limits to keep Russia at bay. According to the report, Ukrainian troops have been firing their heavy artillery pieces past when they would typically be due for a repair, and at unprecedented rates to keep Russian forces at bay. Because of this, the support team is learning the limits of these systems and where they might have a breaking point. In finally securing the Western-made tanks, which were much-sought-after by Ukraine, the country has now set its ambitions on acquiring fighter jets.

SummarySummary Companies Top EU court dismisses HSBC challenge over cartel participationUpholds annulment of Euribor cartel fineHSBC separately challenging reduced Euribor fineBRUSSELS, Jan 12 (Reuters) - HSBC (HSBA.L) on Thursday failed to overturn a court ruling that it had participated in a cartel to rig benchmark Euribor rates in 2007, but Europe's top court confirmed that a 33.6 million euro ($36 million) fine had been scrapped. The European Court of Justice, Europe's highest court, rejected HSBC's attempt to clear its name by challenging a 2019 lower court decision that it had colluded with others to try to manipulate key Euribor (euro interbank offered rate) rates. The European Commission, the bloc's executive body, ruled in 2016 that HSBC and six other banks had tried to distort Euribor, a benchmark for rates on financial products, fining the lender 33.6 million euros. Three years later, a lower tribunal scrapped the fine because of insufficient reasoning, but dismissed the bank's attempt to shake off the ruling that it had taken part in a cartel. The European Commission subsequently imposed a slightly lower fine of 31.7 million euros in 2021, which HSBC is separately challenging.

☆ HSBC wins appeal against $36 mln Euribor cartel fine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BRUSSELS, Jan 12 (Reuters) - HSBC (HSBA.L) has won an appeal against a decision by European antitrust regulators to fine Europe's second-largest bank 33.6 million euros ($36 million) over its role in a cartel to manipulate benchmark Euribor interest rates in 2007. HSBC, penalised alongside JPMorgan (JPM.N) and Credit Agricole (CAGR.PA), challenged the decision and in 2019, a lower tribunal scrapped the fine because of insufficient reasoning. The European Commission subsequently re-imposed a slightly lower fine of 31.7 million euros in 2021. HSBC, JPMorgan and Credit Agricole opted against settling with European regulators and, following a full investigation, JPMorgan was fined 337.2 million euros and Credit Agricole was ordered to pay 114.7 million euros. EU, U.S. and British regulators have fined banks billions of euros for manipulating benchmark interest rates and the foreign exchange market.

☆ FBI warning on teens and ‘sextortion’ means parents need to take these steps
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( Teresa Huizar | Teresa Huizar Is The Ceo Of | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

This week, the FBI issued a rare public safety alert warning of an alarming increase in “sextortion” cases targeting children and teens. One former investigator with the New Jersey State Police reported that sextortion cases have increased 400% in the last four years. One told a 13-year-old he would rape her and kill her parents if she didn’t perform certain sexual acts on camera. Tell kids to be highly selective about sharing any personal information and to never, ever share intimate images online. And anytime a child is blackmailed or extorted for sexual images, that should be reported to law enforcement.

☆ DOJ and SEC charge social media influencers in alleged $100 million stock pump and dump scheme
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Lauren Feiner | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The seal of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is seen at their headquarters in Washington, D.C., May 12, 2021. The influencers allegedly gained a profit by pumping the stock prices and then selling once they rose, earning about $100 million in total, the SEC claims. The seven charged with securities fraud used the social media platforms to manipulate exchange-traded stocks in a scheme going back to at least January 2020, the SEC alleged. The SEC alleged Knight also traded with the other defendants and saw profits from the scheme. Some of the defendants' Twitter bios include disclaimers at least as of Wednesday that appear to try to mitigate their legal risks.

☆ Deutsche bank, Rabobank hit with EU antitrust charge over bond cartel
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] People are silhouetted next to the Deutsche Bank's logo prior to the bank's annual meeting in Frankfurt, Germany, May 24, 2018. REUTERS/Kai PfaffenbachBRUSSELS, Dec 6 (Reuters) - Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) and Rabobank (RABO.UL) were charged by EU antitrust regulators on Tuesday of taking part in a government bond cartel, the latest move against a sector which has racked up millions of euros in fines for various competition violations. Deutsche Bank said it does not expect any sanction, suggesting that it may have alerted the cartel to the authorities. "Deutsche Bank has proactively cooperated with the European Commission in this matter and as a result has been granted conditional immunity. In accordance with the European Commission’s guidelines, Deutsche Bank does not expect a financial penalty," the German lender said.

☆ Manchester United fans want more say under any new owners
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Nov 23 (Reuters) - Manchester United needs new owners and fresh investment to halt years of decline and fans should be given a real say in how the club is run in future, the Supporters Trust MUST said on Wednesday. "Any new ownership structure must embed supporters, including a degree of fan share ownership, in their operating model." Manchester (United) is a marketing club," Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo said this month in an explosive interview that led to his departure. Duncan Drasdo, the MUST chief executive, told Sky Sports television "the real way to unlock the value of Manchester United is to work in partnership with the fans, not exploit them as customers. Ratcliffe, a lifelong United fan who heads chemicals company INEOS, said last month he had contacted the Glazer family about buying United but was told the club was not for sale.

In a private chat on Signal with about 50 Twitter staffers, nearly 40 said they had decided to leave, according to the former employee. A separate poll on Blind asked staffers to estimate what percentage of people would leave Twitter based on their perception. Blue hearts and salute emojis flooded Twitter and its internal chatrooms on Thursday, the second time in two weeks as Twitter employees said their goodbyes. By 6 p.m. Eastern, over two dozen Twitter employees across the United States and Europe had announced their departures in public Twitter posts reviewed by Reuters, though each resignation could not be independently verified. Early on Wednesday, Musk had emailed Twitter employees, saying: "Going forward, to build a breakthrough Twitter 2.0 and succeed in an increasingly competitive world, we will need to be extremely hardcore".

☆ Factbox: Twitter alternatives that users are turning to
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 7 (Reuters) - After taking Twitter Inc private for $44 billion, Elon Musk has started making changes to the social media platform that have irked some users, making them look for alternatives. COHOSTCohost is an ad-free social media platform. The platform allows users to target an audience to enhance engagement on posts and says users can find experts on topics of discussion. TUMBLRTumblr is a social media website that was launched in 2007 which allows users to post long-form blog-style content with media elements such as photos and GIFs. It also allows users to chat with each other much like Twitter's direct messaging function.

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