Cincunri Sakia

Kamis, 03 Desember 2020

COVID-19: US logs 3,157 more coronavirus deaths - a record for a single day - Sky News

The US has reported more than 3,100 coronavirus-related deaths in a single day - a record for the country.

The 3,157 deaths far exceed the previous record of 2,603 set in the spring, while the number of Americans in hospital with COVID-19 has risen past 100,000 for the first time and cases are topping more than 200,000 a day.

The latest update shows more people died with coronavirus in one day than died in the 9/11 terror attacks.

The figures, which are being tracked by Johns Hopkins University, indicate the US is slipping deeper into trouble, with worries the worst could be yet to come following the Thanksgiving holiday, where millions ignored advice and visited family and friends across the country.

Authorities had warned before the holiday that the numbers could fluctuate around Thanksgiving, with a lag in reporting meaning cases could drop, but sharply rise as state agencies catch up.

Hospitals across the country have been inundated with coronavirus patients, with a top health official warning: "The reality is December and January and February are going to be rough times."

"I actually believe they are going to be the most difficult time in the public health history of this nation," Dr Robert Redfield, head of the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, said.

Deaths related to COVID-19 have risen steadily over the past few weeks, with records breaking for days on end and the virus resulting in around 270,000 total deaths - and more than 14 million infections.

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The figures come as senior politicians in Washington attempt to negotiate a fresh financial relief bill in an effort to bring much-needed aid to Americans.

President-elect Joe Biden has encouraged Republicans to get behind the bill, worth more than $900bn (£658bn), which would create a $300 (£224) per week benefit for out-of-work Americans, as well as send $160bn (£120bn) to state governments to boost education, offer business subsidies, and bail out transport systems and airlines.

Meanwhile, Americans are not expected to have much longer to wait for the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine to be approved.

The White House's chief immunologist Dr Anthony Fauci told Sky News that while he believed America's approval process was more rigorous than the UK's, the jab is "safe and effective" and would likely be signed off for use in the US in the coming days.

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2020-12-03 20:38:21Z
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Iran rejects Biden's terms for reviving nuclear deal - BBC News

Iran will not accept preconditions from a new Biden administration over its nuclear programme and the US must return to a 2015 deal before talks can take place, its foreign minister says.

Javad Zarif said the US had its own "commitments" that must be implemented.

President-elect Joe Biden has said he will rejoin the nuclear deal and lift sanctions if Tehran returns to "strict compliance with the nuclear deal".

Both sides appear to want the other to readopt the agreement's terms first.

In May 2018, US President Donald Trump pulled out of the deal negotiated under his predecessor, Barack Obama.

He then reimposed strict economic sanctions against Iran, targeting the country's oil and financial sectors.

Tehran has since exceeded limits to its nuclear activities set under the deal, raising suspicions that it could be using the programme as a cover to develop a nuclear bomb.

Its government insists, however, that its nuclear ambitions are entirely peaceful.

Iran nuclear crisis in 300 words

The deal was designed to constrain the programme in a verifiable way in return for sanctions relief.

What is Iran's position now on the nuclear deal?

Addressing a virtual conference hosted by Italy on Thursday, Mr Zarif said the US had been "in grave breach" of a UN resolution endorsing the nuclear deal when it abandoned it, describing the Trump administration as "a rogue regime".

"The United States must stop, the United States must cease its violations of international law," he said. "It doesn't require any negotiations."

Mr Zarif went on to say that the US was "not in a position to set conditions".

Mr Biden, who is due to be sworn in as the 46th US president on 20 January, said he would prioritise returning the US to the agreement and look at lifting sanctions, but that it would require Iran to first comply with its terms.

He told the New York Times this week it was "going to be hard" but "the last goddamn thing we need in that part of the world is a build-up of nuclear capability".

On Wednesday, Iran's parliament passed a bill that would prevent UN inspections of its nuclear sites and require the government to resume enriching uranium to 20% - well above the 3.67% agreed under the deal - if sanctions were not eased within two months.

Uranium enriched to a much higher level can be used in a nuclear bomb, though once 20% has been achieved it is technologically easier to reach that required level of purity.

Why do the limits on Iran's uranium enrichment matter?

President Hassan Rouhani said he opposed implementation of the law while the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who is the highest authority in the country, has still to make clear his position on the bill.

A satellite image shows Iran's Natanz nuclear facility in Isfahan, Iran, 21 October 2020

The moves come after the targeted killing of Iran's top nuclear scientist, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, who played a crucial role in the country's nuclear programme.

He was killed in a mysterious attack on a road outside the capital Tehran last Friday. Iran believes Israel and an exiled opposition group used a remote-control weapon to carry out the shooting.

Israel has not publicly commented on the allegations of its involvement.

How will Iran respond to nuclear scientist's killing?

When Mr Trump abandoned the nuclear agreement, he said he wanted to force Iran to negotiate a new deal that would place indefinite curbs on its nuclear programme and also halt its development of ballistic missiles.

Iran refused and in July 2019 it breached the 3.67% cap on uranium enrichment. The enrichment level has remained steady at up to 4.5% since then.

Tehran declared in January it would no longer abide by any of the restrictions imposed by the deal.

It said it would not observe limitations on its capacity for enrichment, the level of enrichment, the stock of enriched material, or research and development.

Last month, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said Iran had more than 12 times the amount of enriched uranium permitted under the agreement.

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2020-12-03 18:23:00Z
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Adolf Hitler elected in Namibia's local council elections - but has 'no plans for world domination' - Sky News

A man named after Adolf Hitler has won a local election in Namibia - but insists he has no plans for world domination.

Uunona Adolf Hitler, 54, was elected as a local politician for the town of Ompundja, in the north of the country, with 85% of the vote.

However, Mr Uunona - as he prefers to be called - says that despite his unfortunate namesake, he has no plans to take over the world.

Speaking to the German news website Bild, he said his father gave him the name without understanding who the Nazi leader was or what he stood for.

Namibia is a former German colony, so it is not unusual for streets, places and people to have German names.

"It was a perfectly normal name for me when I was a kid," he said. "It wasn't until I grew older, that I realised that this man wanted to subjugate the whole world and killed millions of Jews.

"The fact I have this name does not mean I want to conquer Oshana (the local region).

"It doesn't mean I'm striving for world domination."

When asked why he did not change his name, he said it was too late to do so, adding that he also does not use his full name on social media accounts or in public - only on official documents.

Mr Uunona won his election by 1,196 votes to 213, which handed him a seat on the regional council.

It is not his first foray into politics, and he has been a popular local councillor for some time, as well as being an ardent anti-apartheid activist.

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2020-12-03 15:59:43Z
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Covid-19: Facebook to take down false vaccine claims - BBC News

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Facebook says it will start removing false claims about Covid-19 vaccines to prevent "imminent physical harm".

The company says it is accelerating its plans to ban misleading and false information on its Facebook and Instagram platforms following the announcement of the first vaccine being approved for use in the United Kingdom.

Among already-debunked claims that won't be allowed are falsehoods about vaccine ingredients, safety, effectiveness and side-effects.

Also banned will be the long-running false conspiracy theory that coronavirus vaccines will contain a microchip to control or monitor patients.

Facebook has come under fire for what's been seen as a patchy approach to fake news and false claims, and misleading content about the pandemic is still widely available on its platforms.

What did Facebook say?

It says it will remove false claims about Covid-19 vaccines "that have already been debunked by public health experts".

Facebook says that since January it has been removing content about the pandemic, such as false cures and treatments or claims that the disease doesn't exist at all.

In October, it banned advertisements that discouraged people from taking vaccines.

This is a continuation of the policy "to remove misinformation about the virus that could lead to imminent physical harm", the company said.

"This could include false claims about the safety, efficacy, ingredients or side effects of the vaccines [and] false claims that Covid-19 vaccines contain microchips, or anything else that isn't on the official vaccine ingredient list.

"We will also remove conspiracy theories about Covid-19 vaccines that we know today are false."

Vaccine rumours debunked: Microchips, 'altered DNA' and more

However, Facebook warned that these policies, which the BBC understands have been brought forward following the approval of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine by the British medicines regulator, will take some time to come into effect.

"We will not be able to start enforcing these policies overnight," a Facebook statement said.

A protester holds up an anti-vaccine placard

Analysis box by Marianna Spring, Disinformation and social media reporter

Social media is awash with conspiracy theories about coronavirus vaccines, which resurface whenever news breaks - like the approval of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for use in the UK.

These conspiracies are worlds away from legitimate concerns, making false allegations of microchipping, genocide and DNA alternation.

For that reason, many will welcome the announcement of this crackdown by Facebook - including politicians who have been calling for action from the social media giants.

It's tougher than previous announcements - this time a commitment to removing conspiracies rather than just fact-checking or labelling these posts as misleading.

But fears remain that yet another commitment to tackle misinformation by the social media site will not translate into effective action - or be the right approach.

Conspiracy narratives about the coronavirus vaccine have become so prevalent, often originating in anti-vaccination and pseudoscience circles before spilling into parent chats, community forums and Instagram feeds.

Undoing those narratives months after they first began to spread may not be enough to reverse the seeds of doubt they have sown in communities around the world.

What response has there been?

While Facebook's announcement has been broadly welcomed, there are concerns that the company might not follow through on its promises.

Imran Ahmed, CEO of the Center for Countering Digital Hate, said in a statement: "Today's policy change is long overdue, but there is no guarantee that it will be properly enforced."

"As we saw in the months following Facebook's promise to remove misinformation about coronavirus earlier this year, they rarely enforce their own policies".

Mr Ahmed went on to urge governments to accelerate plans to regulate harmful online content. "They must introduce tough regulations as soon as possible to ensure these policies are enforced, including criminal sanctions for breaches of their duty to remove harmful material that puts lives at risk."

The UK government has been planning an Online Harms Bill for this very purpose, but it has been criticised over "unacceptable" delays in its publication, while Jo Stevens, Labour's Shadow Secretary of State for Digital, called for emergency legislation "to protect people from this dangerous disinformation".

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2020-12-03 14:07:00Z
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COVID-19: Hackers targeted vaccine 'cold supply' chain network - state actors suspected - Sky News

A cyber espionage campaign targeted at companies vital to the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines has been detected.

According to an alert issued by the US government and a research blog published by IBM, the hacking campaign started in September.

It targeted a range of organisations, including in government and across the energy and IT sectors, that are associated with the COVID-19 'cold supply' chain.

Live COVID updates as UK prepares for vaccine rollout

The cold chain is an essential part of distributing vaccines manufactured by Pfizer/BioNTech, approved in the UK on Tuesday, as the vaccine needs to be stored at -70C (-94F) to avoid spoiling before being administered.

Although it is not clear whether the sophisticated phishing emails were successful, IBM warned that the campaign bore "the potential hallmarks of nation-state tradecraft" rather than an attack by cyber criminals.

"Without a clear path to a cash-out, cyber criminals are unlikely to devote the time and resources required to execute such a calculated operation with so many interlinked and globally distributed targets," added IBM.

This week Interpol issued an alert warning that organised criminal gangs could attempt to steal COVID-19 vaccines or create their own fake versions to profit from the pandemic.

It follows an announcement in July from Britain, the US and Canada that Russian cyber spies were trying to steal research into coronavirus vaccines and treatment.

IBM said emails were sent to 10 organisations, including the European Commission's Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union, which handles tax and customs issues across the EU.

Claire Zaboeva, an IBM analyst involved in the detection, told Associated Press that the EU agency - which is revising import and export regimes for vaccines - "would be a gold mine" for hackers seeking to access other organisations.

IBM warned that if the hackers were successful, the attacks could lead to the "stealing and selling [of] vaccine shipping containers in black markets across the globe".

The hackers have sent emails impersonating a business executive from the Chinese company Haier Biomedical, which is "a credible and legitimate member company of the COVID-19 vaccine supply chain" according to IBM.

The intention of the campaign was to harvest credentials, "possibly to gain future unauthorised access to corporate networks and sensitive information relating to the COVID-19 vaccine distribution".

Among the companies targeted were those involved in manufacturing solar panels, which can be used in countries without a reliable power supply to ensure vaccine refrigerators are on, as well as petrochemical companies which produce dry ice.

Analysis: Hackers may have even more sensitive secrets in their sights than COVID vaccine plans
By Deborah Haynes, foreign affairs editor

The targeting of a logistical chain to transport coronavirus vaccines around the world could have been a soft underbelly for the hackers to steal even more sensitive secrets from governments.

Researchers at IBM who uncovered the hack described how a convincing-looking phishing email enticed recipients to enter their credentials on to a web page, which would allow the hackers to harvest these details.

Such a backdoor could give them access to sensitive information on how countries plan to distribute a COVID-19 vaccine.

But IBM's Security X-Force said it could also let the hackers delve much deeper into the compromised accounts from around the world.

"Moving laterally through networks and remaining there in stealth would allow them to conduct cyber espionage and collect additional confidential information from the victim environments for future operations," it said in a blog post.

The attack covered six countries, targeting organisations likely involved in the global distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. They included the European Commission's Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union.

IBM said: "Targeting this entity could serve as a single point of compromise impacting multiple high-value targets across the 27 member states of the European Union and beyond."

The energy sector, involved in manufacturing solar panels to help power refrigerators to keep vaccines cold, was also hit.

"A compromise of such technologies could result in intellectual property theft or stealing and selling vaccine shipping containers in black markets across the globe," the IBM researchers said.

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2020-12-03 12:13:09Z
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COVID-19: Hackers targeted vaccine 'cold supply' chain network - state actors suspected - Sky News

A cyber espionage campaign targeted at companies vital to the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines has been detected.

According to an alert issued by the US government and a research blog published by IBM, the hacking campaign started in September.

It targeted a range of organisations, including in government and across the energy and IT sectors, that are associated with the COVID-19 'cold supply' chain.

Live COVID updates as UK prepares for vaccine rollout

This week Interpol issued an alert warning that organised criminal gangs could attempt to steal COVID-19 vaccines or create their own fake versions to profit from the pandemic.

It follows an announcement in July from Britain, the US and Canada that Russian cyber spies were trying to steal research into coronavirus vaccines and treatment.

IBM said emails were sent to 10 organisations, including the European Commission's Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union, which handles tax and customs issues across the EU.

IBM warned that if the hackers were successful, the attacks could lead to the "stealing and selling [of] vaccine shipping containers in black markets across the globe".

The intention of the campaign was to harvest credentials, "possibly to gain future unauthorised access to corporate networks and sensitive information relating to the COVID-19 vaccine distribution".

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COVID-19: Hackers targeted vaccine 'cold supply' chain network - Sky News

A cyber espionage campaign targeted at companies vital to the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines has been detected.

According to an alert issued by the US government and a research blog published by IBM, the hacking campaign started in September.

It targeted a range of organisations, including in government and across the energy and IT sectors, that are associated with the COVID-19 'cold supply' chain.

Live COVID updates as UK prepares for vaccine rollout

This week Interpol issued an alert warning that organised criminal gangs could attempt to steal COVID-19 vaccines or create their own fake versions to profit from the pandemic.

It follows an announcement in July from Britain, the US and Canada that Russian cyber spies were trying to steal research into coronavirus vaccines and treatment.

IBM said emails were sent to 10 organisations, including the European Commission's Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union, which handles tax and customs issues across the EU.

IBM warned that if the hackers were successful, the attacks could lead to the "stealing and selling [of] vaccine shipping containers in black markets across the globe".

The intention of the campaign was to harvest credentials, "possibly to gain future unauthorised access to corporate networks and sensitive information relating to the COVID-19 vaccine distribution".

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Kamis, 03 Desember 2020

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