Tag Archive for: NBC4

Prince George’s Council Members Respond to Spike in Carjackings – NBC4 Washington

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Carjackings have continued to spike in both D.C. and Prince George’s County, leading two county council members to call the crisis a state of emergency.

On April 11, a DoorDash driver was carjacked in District Heights, Maryland, on his first day on the job. Five days later, an Amazon Flex driver said she was in the Bellevue neighborhood in the District when two young people punched her and demanded her keys. And on Tuesday night, several people carjacked a person on H Street NE.

“This is really a carjacking state of emergency, this is not okay, this is not business as usual,” Mel Franklin, a Prince George’s County councilmember, said. 

Franklin and fellow council member Deni Tavares say they’re worried about families who have to deal with carjacking crime.

“They’re just trying to live quiet lives and this is what they’re experiencing on a daily basis,” Tavares said.

In Prince George’s, 90 people were carjacked in 2019. That number nearly tripled to 269 in 2020 and spiked again last year to 381.​

So far in 2022, if carjackings continue at the current pace, the figure will top last year’s number.​

Over in D.C., there have been 161 carjackings so far in 2022, compared to 110 this time last year. That’s an increase of 46%.​

“If people don’t feel safe, they will not live here. We have to restore a sense of safety and a sense of security,” Franklin said. ​

It’s why the council members are pushing for more investment in the community, such as the future Towne Square at Suitland Federal Center, which used to be an area with high crime.  ​

“It’s this kind of investment that can make a supreme difference in reducing crime and helping uplift our communities,” Franklin said. ​

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An Inside Look At the Battle Against Ransomware Attacks – NBC4 Washington

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Ransomware attacks have doubled in each of the past two years, according to a new report from the nonprofit group Identity Theft Resource Center, and the group said hackers demanding payment could become the number one cause of data compromises this year, surpassing phishing schemes.

As witnessed over the past couple of years, it seems no company, government or school is immune to the risk.

“There’s no silver bullet that protects you from everything,” Maryland Chief Information Security Officer Chip Stewart said.

In December, a ransomware attack forced the state’s Department of Health to shut down its website in the middle of the pandemic. It impacted COVID-19 data reporting, hospital operations, even funerals.  

“Systems start malfunctioning, which is how this event was detected,” said Stewart.

He told the I-Team as soon as the threat was discovered emergency plans kicked in and the agency immediately took servers offline to protect the network.

“Ransom payment is always part of the discussion. Fortunately, because of the work we’ve done leading up to this, we haven’t had to consider that as a real possibility at this point,” said Stewart.

Attacks like these happen thousands of times each year, said Jen Miller-Osborn, deputy director of threat intelligence for Unit 42 by Palo Alto Networks, a specially trained team of cybersecurity experts who help with ransomware negotiations.

“Ransomware has gone absolutely insane. They’re continuing to expand their tactics and ways that they’re trying to get paid. The best thing to do is not to pay. But there are cases where you have to because otherwise your business is done. It can be a really, really tough situation,” she said. 

Last April, D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department got hit with an attack. The hackers wanted $4 million. MPD offered $100,000 but ended up paying nothing. Files containing sensitive information on officers and suspects were posted on the dark web.

“It’s definitely a place where criminals hang out. It’s definitely a place that you know these threat actors are leveraging to stay anonymous,” said Ramarcus Baylor, a ransom negotiator for Unit 42 and senior director of incident…

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Metro Watchdog Safety Report Flags Fatigued Train Operators – NBC4 Washington

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Metro’s train and bus operators could be coming to the job tired and physically unfit to perform their duties, according to a report issued Tuesday by the transit agency’s top safety watchdog. 

The Washington Metrorail Safety Commission flagged potential safety risks related to fatigued operators. Some of this could be because workers aren’t getting enough time off between shifts. 

In 2004, a Metro train at the Woodley Park station on the Red Line rolled backward thousands of feet. It crashed into another train, injuring 20 people. Video footage shows twisted, mangled wreckage. 

“It felt like an explosion. Everyone started running and screaming,” one man said. 

The train operator was found to have been tired and not alert, likely because of a lack of sleep. 

Almost 17 years later, the report issued Tuesday says Metro still isn’t doing enough to ensure that employees are rested and physically fit for the job.

“There are opportunities to improve the program to ensure that [operators] are as well rested as they can be. Again, this is a systemic audit – and we look at the systems, trying to give Metro every opportunity to prevent a safety event like a crash before it happens,” safety commission spokesman Max Smith said.

In addition to the 2004 crash, the safety commission pointed to lesser-known examples of train operator fatigue, including when workers have fallen asleep at the switch. 

Metro is reviewing the report and will respond with changes, a representative said. 

The transit agency has 30 days to address the issues.

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How to File Taxes Online Securely – NBC4 Washington

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It’s tax time. The IRS is already accepting tax returns, so if you haven’t started yours, it might be a good time to think about it. And if you’re going to download financial documents and file electronically, Consumer Reports says it’s also a good time to make sure your technology is up to the task of keeping your personal information safe and secure.

Ninety percent of Americans will file their taxes online, either using a professional tax preparer or tax software. And, paired with direct deposit, electronic filing is the fastest way to get a refund. But is it safe?

The IRS says all tax prep software will now have multifactor authentication, which asks users for an extra bit of info to log in, like a code sent to their email address. Because even if someone steals your password, multifactor authentication, also called two-factor authentication, could still stop them from getting into your account.

But before you file, CR says take a few minutes to make sure your sensitive online accounts and your router are secured using strong passwords.

Use a string of random words, numbers and special characters, something no one could guess. Or, better yet, consider using a password manager so you don’t have to remember all of them.

CR’s top-rated password manager is 1Password. It’s the only one tested to earn top marks for data privacy, data security, and usability.

You can also protect your personal tax information by simply looking for the HTTPS or a little lock at the beginning of a web address. Otherwise, it could be a fraudulent site.

Sites with HTTPS use encryption to prevent any information you exchange from being spied on or changed while it’s traveling across the internet.

Newer iPhones and Android phones come with encryption already enabled. It’s also available for Mac and Windows computers; you may just need to enable it in the security settings. So if either is lost or stolen, your personal data can’t be accessed.

Consumer Reports has created a free online security planner to help you secure your devices and…

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