ReHacked #50: Android security updates for May, ransomware and security news, lies of Belarusian government and more

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Conti ransomware gives HSE Ireland free decryptor, still selling data #security

The Conti ransomware gang has released a free decryptor for Ireland’s health service, the HSE, but warns that they will still sell or release the stolen data.

Ireland's HSE, the country's publicly funded healthcare system, and the Department of Health were attacked by the Conti ransomware gang last Friday.

May Android security updates patch 4 zero-days exploited in the wild #security #android

According to info provided by Google's Project Zero team, four Android security vulnerabilities were exploited in the wild as zero-day bugs before being patched earlier this month.

Attacks attempting to exploit these flaws were targeted and impacted a limited number of users based on information shared after this month's Android security updates were published.

"There are indications that CVE-2021-1905, CVE-2021-1906, CVE-2021-28663 and CVE-2021-28664 may be under limited, targeted exploitation," a recently updated version of the May 2021 Android Security Bulletin reveals.

DOOM Captcha - Captchas don't have to be boring #fun

Welcome to Inkscape 1.1! #software

‘I’m way older, but I’m still doing it’: Tony Hawk on his skateboarding legacy #history #popculture

In January, after a few attempts the previous days, Tony Hawk landed a 720 – a skateboarding trick involving two full rotations mid-air. Hawk is widely understood to have invented the 720, a move he has performed many times during his career. But this time, as he wrote on Twitter, it “was a battle … I can’t imagine doing any more”.

I’m speaking to Hawk from his car. He is on his way home to Encinitas, California, having just wrapped a snowboarding trip in Mammoth Mountain. At 53, it’s not that he’s physically incapable of performing the trick again, he says, but that “the risk” – think a broken pelvis and teeth knocked out – “versus the reward will not be worth it in years to come”.

Tesla is found guilty of throttling charging speed, asked to pay $16,000 to thousands of owners #economy #technology

In court in Norway, Tesla was found guilty of throttling charging speed and battery capacity through a software update.

Unless it appeals, Tesla is going to have to pay $16,000 to each of the thousands of owners affected in the country. The fine could be even more significant as other similar legal efforts are on the way in other countries.

Back in 2019, Electrek reported on several reports from Tesla owners about seeing significant drops in range from 12 to 30 miles following a software update.

'They say code is red': transcript of controller telling plane to land in Minsk #world #politics

A Ryanair pilot who landed his plane in Belarus on Sunday repeatedly questioned information about an alleged bomb threat, before ultimately agreeing to land in Minsk, according to a transcript released on Tuesday by authorities in Belarus.

Belarus scrambled a warplane to escort the flight, which was en route from Greece to Lithuania. When the plane landed in Minsk, Belarusian authorities arrested a dissident journalist. Western countries have described the incident as a hijacking or piracy.

USB-C is about to go from 100W to 240W, enough to power beefier laptops #technology

Previously, the USB-C Power Delivery spec tops out at 100 watts, and it’s definitely held the industry back a tad — for example, while my own Dell XPS 15 can technically charge over USB-C, it needs 130W of power to charge and run at full bore simultaneously. Some manufacturers have sold off-spec USB-C adapters (I have a Dell dock that outputs 130W), but they don’t always come bundled with machines and generally have a fixed, non-detachable cable to prevent against misuse.

Greenland’s ice sheet is releasing huge amounts of mercury into rivers #nature

An ice sheet in the southwestern region of Greenland is releasing  huge amounts of mercury into nearby rivers. The discovery is worrying as  the toxic metal can accumulate in the marine animals that are a key  dietary component for local Indigenous communities.

Mercury is a naturally occurring metal found in some rocks. As glaciers slowly flow downhill, they grind up the underlying rocks, potentially releasing mercury into their meltwater.                    

“[Mercury concentrations in this region] are at least 10 times higher than in an average river,” says Hawkings. This means the meltwater is as rich in mercury as some highly polluted rivers – except in this case the mercury hasn’t been introduced into the water directly by humans. “Although this mercury isn’t introduced by humans, the ice sheet is melting much faster as a result of climate change,” says Hawkings.

The only Buddhist region in Europe #culture #history

The fragrance of joss sticks hangs in the air, while in the background there is the constant murmur of monks reciting their mantras. When you experience a ceremony in the Golden Temple of Elista, you'd be forgiven for believing that you're no longer in Europe, but you definitely haven't left the continent. Elista is the capital of Kalmykia. The autonomous federal republic of Russia lies between the Caucasus and Caspian Sea in the southern Russian steppes, and geographically is part of Europe. It is the continent's only predominantly Buddhist region.

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Dainius