 Montana has become the first U.S. state to pass a ban on TikTok for all citizens, forbidding users from downloading the app. Existing users, however, will be able to keep using the social media platform. Several states had previously banned TikTok but only on government-owned devices. More: - The bill, which passed by a vote of 54 to 43, will go into effect in January 2024 after Gov. Greg Gianforte signs it, which he is expected to do.
- The two main reasons for banning the app cited in the bill are surveillance risks and encouraging dangerous activities among youth.
- Companies that do not respect this law will be fined up to $10,000, while similar fines for individuals have not been presented at the moment.
- Some researchers have stated that implementing this new law may pose an issue for the state of Montana for several reasons.
- According to them, it is only possible to enforce this law by knowing the location of the user, which violates their privacy rights.
- Furthermore, they claim that users bypass location-based restrictions by using VPNs.
- TikTok released a public statement saying that the decision violates the First Amendment and that it will actively work to reverse this bill.
Zoom Out: - TikTok has been at the center of controversy for the last few years. Former President Donald Trump had proposed that the app should be either banned or bought by a U.S. company. During that period, it was reported that Microsoft was close to acquiring the app, but the deal never came to fruition.
- The app has been banned on government devices in many U.S. states and countries worldwide. Countries such as India, however, have banned it altogether.
- TikTok CEO Shou Chew testified in front of the U.S. Congress a month ago, claiming that the app didn't track its users any more than apps such as Facebook and Instagram do.
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Israeli cybersecurity company QuaDream is in the process of being shut down after being mentioned by Microsoft as a spyware vendor. This decision is being reported by Israeli media, which claim they have sources inside the company. More: - According to reports, the company has notified its employees that they are being laid off and that the company will shut down its operations in the upcoming days.
- The report goes as far as saying that QuaDream only has two employees in its offices who are simply there to maintain the company's important devices until it sells its intellectual property.
- Last week, it was reported that the Israeli firm's hacking tools had been used against journalists, opposition figures, and advocacy organizations across at least 10 countries, including people in North America and Europe.
- The report from Microsoft claimed that several civil society members had confirmed that their iPhones were hacked by the company.
Zoom Out: - Researchers reported in 2021 that QuaDream sold its spyware technology to Saudi Arabia.
- This case has drawn a comparison to another Israeli company, NSO Group. The latter is known for creating Pegasus, a spyware that was used by governments around the world to spy on opposition political opponents, journalists, activists, etc. The spyware was reportedly even used to spy on high-ranking officials in the European Union.
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Dutch police have sent emails to RaidForums members, warning them they're being watched. The infamous hacker forum was shut down in 2022. More: - RaidForums was an online hangout where hackers sold and shared information such as:
- stolen passwords,
- credit cards,
- log-in credentials,
- database information, etc.
- In April 2022, the website was seized in an international law enforcement operation, while its administrator, Omnipotent, was arrested along with two of his accomplices.
- Yesterday, the Dutch National Police announced that they sent thousands of emails, and hundreds of letters, warning RaidForums members that their actions are illegal and that they are being monitored by law enforcement.
- These members were identified by analyzing the seized RaidForums forum database, which had information such as:
- email addresses,
- registration IP addresses,
- standard IP addresses, etc.
- The Dutch police added that by using this data, it had been able to arrest three people who threatened companies and demanded ransom.
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Hackers have stolen $7M from the Hundred Finance DeFi Protocol, managing to manipulate its price. The threat actor responsible for the breach has not been tracked yet. More: - According to researchers, the threat actor stole the funds by donating 200 WBTC to inflate the exchange rate for hWBTC.
- The attacker specifically manipulated the exchange rate between ERC-20 tokens and htokens.
- By donating a large amount of WBTC to htoken contract, the hacker caused the exchange rate to rise.
- The company has stated that it will not comment on the threat vector that the hacker used to breach its digital infrastructure and has advised that external actors refrain from giving conclusions regarding the case until an official announcement.
Zoom Out: - This is not the first time the company has been breached. In 2022, Hundred Finance and Agave were hacked by a reentrancy attack that cost them $11M.
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Hackers have hit NCR's database in Hawaii with a cyberattack. The cyberattack has affected restaurants across the U.S. More: - NCR is a digital payment company that is used by many companies in the hospitality sector in the U.S.
- On April 13, the company was reportedly hit by a ransomware attack from an unknown threat actor.
- NCR claims that the breach affected numerous restaurants in the U.S. but has not disabled their ability to complete transactions using the platform.
Zoom Out: - 51% of the food and beverage sector reported substantial disruption when hit by a ransomware attack in 2021. More than a third of companies stated that the revenue impact of operational disruption would be at least $1M per hour.
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- Researchers have tracked a new Android Trojan named Chameleon. The Trojan has been targeting users in Australia and Poland.
- A new LockBit ransomware gang encryptor that specifically targets Mac devices has been uncovered by researchers.
- A hacking campaign named QBot malware is using business correspondence to steal banking credentials.
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 |  | Arbër is an Inside writer who also has experience in entrepreneurship. He has experience covering Consumer Tech, Venture Capital, NFTs, Crypto, etc. Arbër holds a Bachelor's degree in Business from XAMK University in Finland. When he is not reading(and writing) business news, he chooses to watch sports or anime...and then read news about sports or anime. |   | | Editor | Aaron Crutchfield is based in the high desert of California. Over the last two decades, he has spent time writing and editing at various local newspapers and defense contractors in California. When he's not working, he can often be found looking at the latest memes with his kids or working on his 1962 and 1972 Fords. | |
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