Tag Archive for: chief

Former NCSC chief calls for ransomware payments ban, but cyber security experts aren’t keen


The former chief executive of the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has called for the government to ban organizations from making ransomware payments.

Writing in The Times, Ciaran Martin, who served as the NCSC’s inaugural chief executive, suggested a ban could help put a stop to the ever-increasing proliferation of ransomware, referring to the ‘apparently sanguine attitude’ of British policymakers to cyber criminals groups.

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Britons must ‘strengthen defences’ against growing threat of AI-assisted ransomware, cyber security chief warns | UK News


Britons must “strengthen their defences” against the growing threat posed by ransomware developed or enhanced using artificial intelligence (AI), the head of the UK’s cyber security agency has warned.

It comes as a new report from the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has found that AI is lowering the barrier of entry to novice cyber criminals.

The NCSC – which is a part of GCHQ – has also warned that bad actors are using AI to better find and target victims and that the technology will almost certainly increase the volume and impact of cyber attacks in the near term.

The agency has previously identified ransomware as the biggest cyber threat facing the UK.

NCSC chief executive Lindy Cameron said: “We must ensure that we both harness AI technology for its vast potential and manage its risks – including its implications on the cyber threat.

“The emergent use of AI in cyber attacks is evolutionary not revolutionary, meaning that it enhances existing threats like ransomware but does not transform the risk landscape in the near term.

“As the NCSC does all it can to ensure AI systems are secure by design, we urge organisations and individuals to follow our ransomware and cyber security hygiene advice to strengthen their defences and boost their resilience to cyber attacks.”

Handout screengrab of Lindy Cameron, CEO of the UK's National Cyber Security Centre, speaking at an Institute of International and European Affairs (IIEA) event, where she praised the Irish Government for refusing to pay ransom over HSE cyber attack. Issue date: Friday June 25, 2021.
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Lindy Cameron, CEO of the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre. File pic

Ransomware involves hackers gaining access to a user’s system and then either stealing or locking access to files using encryption, demanding a ransom to return the data.

One of the largest incidents seen so far was the 2017 WannaCry attack, which affected computers worldwide, including car firms such as Nissan, Honda, and dozens of NHS trusts across England.

The attack, believed to have originated from North Korea, severely disrupted services and left thousands of appointments cancelled, while an October 2018 report found the hack and the fall-out from it had cost the NHS as much as £100m.

North Korea has been widely blamed for the WannaCry ransomware attack
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North Korea has been widely blamed for the WannaCry ransomware attack

The British…

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Army Chief Emphasises Importance of Media to Military Operations – Voice of Nigeria






















Army Chief Emphasises Importance of Media to Military Operations – Voice of Nigeria

















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Nigerian govt indicts hospital’s Chief Medical Director for job racketeering


An investigative panel set up by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare on Sunday revealed why some health workers at the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital (OAUTH), Ile-Ife, Osun State, have been unpaid for months.

The investigative panel led by Aderemi Azeez found that the former Acting Chief Medical Director of the hospital, Afolabi Owojuyigbe, carried out over-employment in the hospital, without provision in the personnel budget. Mr Owojuyigbe and his accomplices are also culpable of job racketeering, according to the panel.

The ministry confirmed the development in a statement signed by its Director of Press, Patricia Deworitshe, noting that the government waded into the matter to set the record straight.

According to the statement, the panel disclosed that Mr Owojuyigbe, a Consultant Anaesthetist, employed over 1,973 staff as against the waiver for 450 vacancies granted to the hospital in the 2022 employment process by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation.

Protests

There were reports that some health workers accused the management of OAUTH of subjecting them to penury over unpaid salaries for 10 months.

The accusers lamented that they resorted to begging to feed their families “due to the hardship the non-payment of their salaries subjected them to.”

Many had also accused the hospital management of commercialising the job opportunities by allegedly selling the slots for as high as N500,000.

In response to the allegations, the Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Pate, on his verified X handle @muhammadpate on 13 October, confirmed that an investigation had been completed on the matter.

“We are addressing the OAUTH situation. The investigation has just been completed on this unfortunate situation. We understand the difficulties being faced by numerous innocent health workers and will do our best to resolve it equitably,” the minister posted at the time.

Findings

In a statement on Sunday by the ministry, which is titled, ‘OAUTH Ife and the Unrest,’ it noted that the unrest was attributed to the alleged job racketeering, and over-employment saga under Mr Owojuyigbe.

The statement termed the…

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