DarkCyber for September 8, 2020: Innovation, Black Hat SEO, Drovorub, Sparks Snuffed, and Killer Drones
September 8, 2020
DarkCyber Video News for September 8, 2020, is now available. You can view the video on YouTube, Facebook, and the DarkCyber blog.
The program covers five stories:
First, the Apple-Fortnite dispute has created some new opportunities for bad actors and their customers. The market for stolen Fortnite accounts is robust. Accounts are for sale on the Dark Web and the Regular Web. Some resellers are allegedly generating six figures per month by selling hapless gamers’ accounts.
Second, you can learn how to erode relevance and make a page jump higher in the Google search results lists. Pay $50 and you get information to set up an Amazon or eBay store with little or no investment. No inventory has to be purchased, stored, and shipped. Sound like magic?
Third, the FBI and NSA have published a free analysis of Drovorub malware. If you are responsible for a Linux server, requesting a free copy of the publication may save you time, money, and loss of important data.
Fourth, a team of international law enforcement professionals shut down the Sparks video piracy operation. The impact of the shut down hits pirate sites and torrents. Three of the alleged operators have been identified. Two are under arrest, and the third is fleeing Interpol.
Finally, in this program’s drone report, DarkCyber explains how drug lords are using consumer drones in a novel and deadly way. Consumer-grade drones are fitted with explosives and a detonator. Each drone comes with a radio control unit and a remote trigger for the explosive’s on drone detonator. The purpose is to fly the drone near a target and set off the explosive. To ensure a kill, each of the weaponized drones carries a container of steel ball bearings to ensure the mission is accomplished.
DarkCyber is a production of Stephen E Arnold and the DarkCyber research team.
Kenny Toth, September 8, 2020
Qualcomm: Tools? Nobody Had Tools.
September 7, 2020
I read “Qualcomm’s Founder On Why the US Doesn’t Have Its Own Huawei.” Interesting viewpoints appear in the article.
Here’s the passage that caught my attention:
Qualcomm, by selling companies a comprehensive chipset that could power a cellphone, actually made it easier for new Chinese competitors to hit the market, because they had the tools to create a product instantly. “Unfortunately,” he says, “nobody in the US has really run with it” and done the same thing.
And then:
Another complicating factor is that governments in China and Europe have had industrial aid policies that helped their telecom firms in a way that the US has not. “Our government has not provided R&D support or other support that Huawei and ZTE (another successful Chinese firm) managed to get from their own government,” Jacobs says.
Observation:
- US companies are as large or larger in terms of access to cash and humans. Those companies have the resources to solve certain technical problems, sustain the ecosystem to support certain technologies, and push technology which will be used by billions. What went wrong? Is it possible the US companies were supplying grain to the highest bidder. These bidders then developed industrialized farms. Looks like an error and finger pointing.
- Those who build tools often discover unexpected consequences. As a child I read science fiction books. I recall descriptions of humans building robots and then robots building robots. The story explained that humans were subjugated to their robot overlords who manufactured more and increasingly sophisticated robots. An unexpected consequence?
- “Nobody” and the “government” are convenient excuses.
Net net: Significant shift in the balance of technological power seems to be evident and industry spark plugs are not delivering the necessary oomph. Not a flattering look in what should be a public relations extravaganza, not evidence of systemic failure.
Stephen E Arnold, September 7, 2020
Names: A Problem beyond Math
September 7, 2020
I read “Why Mathematicians Should Stop Naming Things After Each Other.” The main point is that naming conventions in mathematics make it difficult to know to what something refers. There are numerous examples; for example:
A Calabi-Yau manifold is a compact, complex Kähler manifold with a trivial first Chern class.
A possible explanation? Consider:
The memory-intensive naming schemes in modern math may have the result of boxing out the laymen, but we must hope the priests of the academy are not doing it on purpose.
My view is that making names tough to parse adds some magic and special sauce to what might otherwise be a “so what?” insight. On the other hand, weird naming prevents meaningful connections to be perceived. What if a Hopf fibration is related to giant waves in the universe? Making the connection is tough with today’s naming policies.
My personal view is that many experts are nervous about the validity and value of their research or insights. Hiding behind language and naming conventions deflects criticism.
The same approach fuels the use of jargon and techno-babble. Search is not find. Search is discovery. Yeah, right.
Stephen E Arnold, September 7, 2020
Palantir Has Only Unicorn Scorn for Fellow Travelers
September 7, 2020
It is a time of change for Palantir, a software company that proudly serves the US intelligence community. The firm is both going public and planning to move away from Silicon Valley to Denver, Colorado. CEO Alex Karp took the opportunity to engage in some situational signaling. CNBC describes how “Palantir CEO Rips Silicon Valley in Letter to Investors.” Writer Ari Levy shares some excerpts:
“‘Software projects with our nation’s defense and intelligence agencies, whose missions are to keep us safe, have become controversial, while companies built on advertising dollars are commonplace. For many consumer internet companies, our thoughts and inclinations, behaviors and browsing habits, are the product for sale. The slogans and marketing of many of the Valley’s largest technology firms attempt to obscure this simple fact.’ Although he did not name any such companies specifically, Facebook fits the description—an ironic touch given that [Palantir cofounder Peter] Thiel was an early investor in that company and remains on its board of directors. Karp said in the letter that government agencies have been hamstrung, in part by failed tech infrastructure and that Palantir’s mission is to help. ‘Our software is used to target terrorists and to keep soldiers safe,’ he wrote. ‘If we are going to ask someone to put themselves in harm’s way, we believe that we have a duty to give them what they need to do their job.’”
That is some wordsmithing. Levy notes one risk factor acknowledged in Palantir’s paperwork—its strident refusal to work with China, despite that country’s rank as the world’s second-largest economy. The potential hit to the company’s growth is no match for its distain of the Chinese communist party, apparently. Count another virtue signaled. Surprisingly, Google’s alleged work with China did not make it directly into the letter, but the write-up reminds us:
“Thiel has accused the company of ‘seemingly treasonous’ behavior for allegedly helping the Chinese government while backing down from a contract with the U.S. government after facing employee criticism. Here’s how Karp addressed the matter: ‘We have chosen sides, and we know that our partners value our commitment. We stand by them when it is convenient, and when it is not.’”
The article reproduces the letter in full at the bottom, so navigate there to read the entire composition. Yes, perhaps it is high time this righteous company said goodbye to famously progressive Silicon Valley. Will Karp miss Philz Coffee as much as his former compatriots? Will interested individuals believe this restatement of reality from a fan of the ANB file format?
Cynthia Murrell, September 7, 2020
Mobile Data Costs Around the World
September 7, 2020
Sometimes it takes looking at the cost of certain services in other countries before we decide whether our situation is acceptable. No, I am not talking about healthcare—Cable.co.uk has published “Worldwide Mobile Data Pricing: The Cost of 1GB of Mobile Data in 228 Countries.” The interactive map makes it clear that the US is making it difficult for some to afford acceptable Internet access.
Anyone who cares to compare should navigate to the map, where one can hover over each country to see highest, lowest, and average prices. The creators have also assigned a rank to each country and note how many plans were sampled and when. Tabs at the top take the curious to “highlights” of the study, regional data, and researcher comments. The description tells us:
“Countries are color-coded by the average price of one gigabyte (1GB) of mobile data. As you can see, this paints an interesting picture, with a lot of the countries where mobile data is cheapest in and around the former USSR, and with some of the most expensive in North America, Africa and Western Europe. …
“Why some countries are missing data: Unlike our measurements of worldwide broadband speed and worldwide broadband pricing, where lack of fixed-line infrastructure meant significant gaps, mobile data provision is near-ubiquitous. However, there are still some countries or territories where either no provision exists, there exists only 2G infrastructure, providing only calls and/or SMS texts, or the data simply isn’t available. And there are countries and regions where problems with the currency do not allow for useful comparison.”
We particularly took note of three enlightening cost comparisons—The US average (in US dollars) of $12.55/GB versus $3.91 in Japan, $1.39 in the UK, and $0.81 in France. Hmm.
Cynthia Murrell, September 07, 2020
Data Brokers: A Partial List
September 7, 2020
DarkCyber has fielded several inquiries in the last three months about data brokers. My response has been to point out that some data brokers are like quinoa farmers near Cusco: Small, subsistence data reselling; others are like Consolidated Foods, the industrialized outfits.
Yon can review a partial list of data brokers on this Github page. However, I want to point out:
- Non US data brokers have information as well. Some of that information is particularly interesting, and it is unlikely that the average email phisher or robocall outfit will have access to these data. (No, I am not listing some of these interesting firms.)
- There are several large data brokers not on this list. In my lectures I mention a giant data broker wanna be, but in most cases when I say “Amazon”, the response is, “My family uses Amazon a couple of times a week.” I don’t push back. I just move forward. What one does not know does not exist for some people.
- Aggregating services with analytics plumbing are probably more important than individual chunks of data from either the quinoa farmers or from a combine. Why? With three items of data and a pool of “maybe useful” content, it is possible to generate some darned interesting outputs.
Putting the focus on a single type of digital artifact is helpful, sometimes interesting, and may be a surprise to some uninformed big time researcher. But the magic of applied analytics is where the oomph is.
Stephen E Arnold, September 7, 2020
Backing up Your Wonderful Mac: Think Twice
September 6, 2020
If you have a Mac anything, check out “Under Construction.” The write up does a good and mostly politically correct explanation of why one’s Mac back ups often disappoint. People love Apple and adore their Mac whatevers. We were testing a software which bonds two or more Internet connections. The software was okay, but the zippy super duper antenna we had to purchase was a bit more problematic. To make the painful two days short, the drivers to make the wonderful Mac connect to the external super duper antenna did not work. The installation nuked the existing installation of our former friend Catalina. We figured no big deal. We had TimeMachine. We had a manual back up on a separate external device.
Problem? You bet.
Nothing restored. If the information in Under Construction is on the beam, the problem is a result of Apple’s lack of engineering attention.
What was our fix? We reinstalled Mojave and got everything working. The TimeMachine thing? We are not using it any more. We manually copy data files and will rely on complete reinstalls when the wonderfully mis-engineered Macs create such excitement. Back ups? Hey, no big deal. Buy an iPhone.
Stephen E Arnold, September 6, 2020
Is YouTube Search Broken? Does Anyone Care?
September 5, 2020
“The Ultimate List of YouTube Channels to Boost your Web Development and Programming Skills” illustrates one of the ways in which YouTube search does not work. The write up is a compendium of YouTube presenters with information of interest to Web developers. The list consists of more than 80 YouTube “channels” with useful information. The list is curated; that is, one or more individuals dug through the digital swamp to locate content on the topic and of value to the list compilers.
Can this list or an approximation of it be produced using the YouTube search system?
The answer is, “No.”
Before offering some observations, let me offer an illustration the DarkCyber team encountered about eight days ago. One of my group wanted to do a review of free video editing software. She ran into a “dark pattern” problem and ended up trying to contact the company’s technical support, obtain information about fixing the issue, and moving forward with the review. The company (an outfit called FXHome) finally roused itself and refunded the money. No explanation about the problem was offered.
As part of that interaction, another team member went looking for information about FXHome on Web search engines. One interesting source was YouTube. We quickly learned that the YouTube search engine cannot display a comprehensive list of results with date and time stamps. My researcher reported, “YouTube doesn’t work.”
You may have had your own experiences with YouTube, but I think most people just take what the recommendation system offers.
Observations:
- For a company in the search business, YouTube search seems flawed
- Locating videos on a topic or by a company is next to impossible
- When lists are displayed, vital information about date, time, and running time are not presented.
YouTube generates a ton of money for Alphabet Google. It also opens the door to curated lists like the one cited above. The YouTube search function does generate frustration.
Stephen E Arnold, September 5, 2020
Palantir: Planning Ahead
September 4, 2020
I read “In Amended Filing, Palantir Admits It Won’t Have Independent Board Governance for Up to a Year.” The legal tap dancing is semi-interesting. Palantir wants money and control. I understand that motive. The company — despite its sudden interest in becoming a cowboy — has Silicon Valley roots.
What’s fascinating is that the company was founded in 2004, although I have seen references to 2003. No big deal. Just a detail. The key point is that the company has been talking about an initial public offering for years.
The write up explains that after submitting an S-1 form to the Securities & Exchange Commission, Palantir submitted a revised or amended S-1. For a firm which provides intelware and policeware to government agencies, planning and getting one’s ducks in a row seem to be important attributes.
Did Palantir just dash off the first S-1 at Philz Coffee? Then did some bright young stakeholder say, “Yo, dudes, we need to make sure we keep control. You know like the Zuck.”
After 16 years in business and burning through a couple of tractor trailers filled with cash, it seems untoward to submit a revision hard on the heels of an SEC S-1 filing.
Careless, disorganized, or what the French call l’esprit d’escalier strikes me as telling.
Observations:
- The resubmission suggests carelessness and flawed management processes
- The action raises the question, “Are these Silicon Valley cowboys getting desperate for an exist?”
- For a low profile outfit engaged in secret work for some of its clients, public actions increase the scrutiny on a company which after a decade and a half is not profitable.
Interesting behavior from from Palantirians. Did the seeing stone suffer a power outage?
Stephen E Arnold, September 4, 2020
Amazon: Employee Surveillance and the Bezos Bulldozer with DeepLens, Ring, and Alexa Upgrades
September 4, 2020
Editor’s Note: This link to Eyes Everywhere: Amazon’s Surveillance Infrastructure and Revitalizing Worker Power may go bad; that is, happy 404 to you. There’s not much DarkCyber can do. Just a heads up, gentle reader.
The information in a report by Open Markets called Amazon’s Surveillance Infrastructure and Revitalizing Worker Power may be difficult to verify and comprehend. People think of Amazon in terms of boxes with smiley faces and quick deliveries of dog food and Lightning cables.
Happy Amazon boxes.
The 34 page document paints a picture of sad Amazon boxes.
The main point is that the Bezos bulldozer drives over employees, not just local, regional, and national retail outlets:
A fundamental aspect of its power is the corporation’s ability to surveil every aspect of its workers’ behavior and use the surveillance to create a harsh and dehumanizing working environment that produces a constant state of fear, as well as physical and mental anguish. The corporation’s extensive and pervasive surveillance practices deter workers from collectively organizing and harm their physical and mental health. Amazon’s vast surveillance infrastructure constantly makes workers aware that every single movement they make is tracked and scrutinized. When workers make the slightest mistake, Amazon can use its surveillance infrastructure to terminate them.
Several observations:
- Amazon is doing what Amazon does. Just like beavers doing what beavers do. Changing behavior is not easy. Evidence: Ask the parents of a child addicted to opioids.
- Stakeholders are happy. Think of the the song with the line “money, money, money.”
- Amazon has the cash, clout, and commitment to pay for lobbying the US government. So far the President of the United States has been able to catch Amazon’s attention with a JEDI sword strike, but that’s not slowed down Darth Jeff.
Net net: After 20 plus years of zero meaningful regulation, the activities of the Bezos bulldozer should be viewed as a force (like “May the force be with you.”) DarkCyber wants to point out that Amazon is also in the policeware business. The write up may be viewed as validation of Amazon’s investments in this market sector.
Stephen E Arnold, September 4, 2020
-
- Subscribe to Beyond Search
Feature archive
News archive
-
