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Lookout for MAZAR Bot — Androids should be scared.


One interesting feature of Mazar is that it can not be installed on smartphones running Android with “Russian” selected as the operating system’s language.

The malware allows the attackers to spy on nearly every activity capable on an Android device, including establishing a backdoor connection, sending premium SMS messages, reading texts sent to the device, including bank authentication PINs.

Turn off “Unknown Sources” on your device — The best way to avoid downloading malicious items is to not allow unknown sources to install stuff on your device. The app asks for wide ranging permissions, including the ability to send SMS, have full internet access, and the ability to erase a phone.

Special courts for cyber criminals.


Police dept asks govt for two courts dedicated to dealing with online crime, to improve conviction rate.

Mumbai: As crimes increasingly go digital, Mumbai police are pushing for the creation of courts that would try only cyber crimes. They have submitted a proposal to the government seeking to establish two special courts for the purpose, in a move aimed to cut back delays in trials.

Joint commissioner of police (crime) Atulchandra Kulkarni said the force is looking forward to the government’s nod, since the courts seem to be ready for the shift.

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The bottom line is robots are machines; and like any other machine, a robot system can be (with the right expertise) reprogram. And, a connected robot to the net, etc. poses a risk as long as hackers poses a risk in the current Cyber environment. Again, I encourage government, tech companies, and businesses work collectively together in addressing the immediate challenge around Cyber Security.

And, there will need to be some way to also track robots & deactivate them remotely especially when the public are allowed to buy them (including criminals).


“We believe story comprehension in robots can eliminate psychotic-appearing behavior and reinforce choices that won’t harm humans and still achieve the intended goal”.

There’s no manual for being a good human, but greeting strangers as you walk by in the morning, saying thank you and opening doors for people are probably among the top things we know we should do, even if we sometimes forget.

The lack of collaboration on cyber security between the senior levels of business is leaving UK firms exposed to fines and reputational damage, a study has revealed.

One in 10 C-level respondents to a survey by Palo Alto Networks said they “kind of” understand what defines an online security risk, but admitted they “still have to use Google to help explain it”.

This finding suggests that the lack of consensus on where the responsibility for cyber security lies could stem from some lack of cyber security understanding at the leadership level.

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Although this article highlights the lack of awareness by some CEOs and board members on all things around Cyber Security; I do see a larger gap and risk. I do believe if a fully funded and dedicated joint task force effort among Silicon Valley, US Government, and Wall Street are not in place tackling this jointly to help the country and economy to diffuse this situation within the next 14 to 18 months that AI could fail in its delivery due to public’s concerns around trust and security.

Therefore, tech spent millions if not billions on new AI technology that businesses and consumers see no value in due to risks.


Some board executives still need help from a search engine to explain cyber security issues, warns report.

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