As is the case with many types of cybersecurity threats, shielding one’s company from ransomware attacks calls for measures that simultaneously build the strongest protections possible while also adopting mitigation strategies that assume those measures will fail. Here are some essential steps that can lessen a company’s vulnerability while also…
Internet & Social Media Law Blog
First-of-Its-Kind Settlement Brings Clarity for Players in Retail Crypto Market
On February 14, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it had entered into a settlement with BlockFi Lending LLC, a subsidiary of BlockFi Inc., (collectively BlockFi) over first-of-its-kind charges that BlockFi had failed to register the offers and sales of its retail crypto lending product, BlockFi Interest Accounts…
News of Note for the Internet-Minded (2/17/22) – Metaverse Gambling, Vanishing NFTs and AI Gaming
Apple’s portal to the metaverse could be nearing, Sony’s AI ups its game(play), a hospital resorts to pen and paper to thwart ransomware, and more in this week’s News of Note! Sony’s AI bests top human competitors in racing game Gran Turismo. (James Vincent, The Verge) Russia moves to regulate…
Shifting Landscapes and Veiled Identities: The Usual Suspects Behind Ransomware Attacks
The actors behind ransomware tend to fall into two categories: cybercriminal gangs, often based in Eastern Europe, and groups backed by economic outcasts like Iran, Russia and North Korea. Historically the first prefer a shotgun approach; the second behave more like snipers. Here are a few of the groups that…
Department of Treasury Study Addresses NFTs, Online Platforms and the Emerging Digital Art Space
Last week, the U.S. Department of the Treasury released a report entitled “Study of the Facilitation of Money Laundering and Terror Finance Through the Trade in Works of Art” that discussed risks in the art sales ecosystem, ranging from high-value traditional art to NFTs and online sales platforms. Section 6110(c)…
News of Note for the Internet-Minded (2/9/22) – Cybercrime, Virtual Concerts and Beatles NFTs
This week’s News of Note includes a Foo Fighters VR concert, a peek inside Trickbot’s operations, an NFT makeover for Beatles memorabilia, some personal space for avatars, and more. Cybercriminals exploit U.S. schools’ growing dependency on technology. (Al Jazeera) Julian Lennon turns Beatles memorabilia into NFTs. (Mark Brown, The Guardian)…
The Many-Headed Threat of Ransomware
It may seem that the very term “ransomware” wasted little time going from “newish-sounding threat” to expected, constant presence in the news and IT meetings alike. But, of course, it’s ultimately just a modern word for one of the oldest crimes out there—holding someone or something hostage until someone else…
News of Note for the Internet-Minded (2/1/22) – AI Colleagues, AR Experiences and Ransomware Dangers
Can AI build AI, what does an augmented reality theater production look like, what is the “quantum apocalypse,” and more… AI gets meta: Researchers at the University of Guelph develop “hypernetwork” to build AI. (Olivia Fields, Quanta Magazine) MIT researchers develop training process to help humans collaborate with AI “colleagues.”…
Second ’Verse, Same as the First: Advertising, Influencing and Disclosure in the Metaverse
Back in the day when I rushed home after school to play The Sims, I would have never imagined that one day I would actually become a Sim… Of course, it turns out The Sims—and games like it—have always been an early, somewhat limited iteration of what is now popularly…
News of Note for the Internet-Minded (1/26/22) – The Virtual Big Bang of NFTs and the Metaverse
This metaverse-meets-NFTs themed edition of News of Note includes travel, food and shoes, a big box retailer entering the NFT arena, and the purchase of (a film adaptation of) a sci-fi classic. Does the metaverse heighten the utility of non-fungible tokens? (Anirudh Tiwaru, Cointelegraph) Cryptocurrency collective purchases Jodoworsky’s Dune adaptation—sans…