Latest news with #KacperPempel
Straits Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Suspected Israeli hackers claim to destroy data at Iran's Bank Sepah
FILE PHOTO: A hooded man holds a laptop computer as cyber code is projected on him in this illustration picture taken on May 13, 2017. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel/Illustration/ File Photo An anti-Iranian government hacking group with potential ties to Israel and a track record of destructive cyberattacks on Iran claimed in social media posts on Tuesday that it had destroyed data at Iran's state-owned Bank Sepah. The group — known as Gonjeshke Darande, or 'Predatory Sparrow' — hacked the bank because they accused it of helping fund Iran's military, according to one of the messages posted online. The hack comes amid increasing hostilities between Israel and Iran, after Israel attacked multiple military and nuclear targets in Iran last week. Both sides have launched multiple missile attacks against each other in the days since. Reuters could not immediately verify the attack on Bank Sepah. The bank's website was offline on Tuesday and its London-based subsidiary, Bank Sepah International plc, did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment. Customers were having problems accessing their accounts, according to Israeli media. Gonjeshke Darande did not respond to multiple messages sent via social media. 'Disrupting the availability of this bank's funds, or triggering a broader collapse of trust in Iranian banks, could have major impacts there,' Rob Joyce, the former top cybersecurity official at the NSA, said in a post on X. In 2022, Gonjeshke Darande claimed responsibility for a cyberattack against an Iranian steel production facility. The sophisticated attack caused a large fire at the facility, resulting in tangible, offline damage. Such attacks are usually beyond the capabilities of activist hackers, security experts say, and would be more in line with the capabilities of a nation state. The group has also been publicly linked by cybersecurity researchers to a 2021 cyberattack that caused widespread outages at gas stations across Iran. Israel has never formally acknowledged that it is behind the group, although Israeli media has widely reported Gonjeshke Darande as 'Israel-linked'. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
09-06-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
South Korea close to $6 billion tank deal with Poland in June, Yonhap reports
FILE PHOTO: A K2 tank, delivered in the first batch of arms from South Korea under contracts signed in recent months, fires during a military drill at a military range in Wierzbiny near Orzysz, Poland, March 30, 2023. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel/File Photo FILE PHOTO: Polish soldiers ride the South Korean-made K2 tank during trial drills prior to annual artillery show 'Autumn Fire 23' at a military range in Bemowo Piskie near Orzysz, Poland, September 16, 2023. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel/File Photo South Korea close to $6 billion tank deal with Poland in June, Yonhap reports SEOUL - South Korea is close to signing a deal worth around $6 billion to supply 180 K2 tanks for Poland, Yonhap News Agency reported on Tuesday. Under the contract, South Korea's Hyundai Rotem, which specialises in industrial and defence contracts, will manufacture 117 tanks, and Poland state-owned Polish Armaments Group will produce the rest locally, Yonhap said. Hyundai Rotem was not immediately available for comment. The signing ceremony will take place in late June in Poland, Yonhap said, citing an anonymous industry source. The two countries in 2022 reached a $13.7 billion arms deal, Seoul's biggest ever, which included supplies of South Korean K2 tanks, rocket launchers and fighter jets to Poland. South Korea used the deal to lay the groundwork for a military-industrial juggernaut that the two nations' defence companies hope would feed Europe's hunger for weapons far into the future. The K2 tank supply contract, part of the broader deal in 2022, was expected to be finalised by the end of last year but appeared to be delayed, partly due to South Korea's political crisis sparked by the short-lived declaration of martial law in December, Yonhap added. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Star
05-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Star
CD Projekt launches Cyberpunk 2077 game on Nintendo Switch 2
Boxes with CD Projekt's game Cyberpunk 2077 are displayed in Warsaw, Poland, December 14, 2020. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel/File Photo GDANSK (Reuters) -Poland's biggest game developer CD Projekt said on Thursday that "Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition" had been launched on the Nintendo Switch 2 console, bringing it to Nintendo players for the first time. Back catalogue sales have become more important for developers due to the increasing number of delays to new games. Last month, Tomb Raider owner Embracer said it was leaning on its back catalogue to maintain cash flow while fewer games are being released. Since the release of "Phantom Liberty" expansion to "Cyberpunk 2077" in September 2023, CD Projekt has been relying on sales of existing games from its back catalogue. Erste Group analyst Krzysztof Tkocz said in a note to clients that the release on Nintendo Switch 2 "will have a significant impact on the company's results in second quarter and subsequent quarters". Gaming fans queued up for the launch of Nintendo's Switch 2 on Thursday amid pent-up demand for the more powerful next-generation gaming device. "We expect that this could be one of the most popular 3rd party games at the launch of the new console", Trigon DM analyst Grzegorz Balcerski said in a note to clients. The price of the game has been set at $69.99 for Nintendo Switch 2. (Reporting by Adrianna Ebert; Editing by Matt Scuffham)
Japan Today
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Japan Today
China issues bounty for hackers it says are linked to Taiwan
FILE PHOTO: A man holds a laptop computer as cyber code is projected on him in this illustration picture taken on May 13, 2017. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel/Illustration/File Photo The public security bureau in the Chinese city of Guangzhou has put up an undisclosed bounty for more than 20 people it suspects carried out cyber attacks in China, the official news agency Xinhua said on Thursday, stepping up accusations against Taipei. The authorities said the hackers were linked to the Taiwan government and named one of them as Ning Enwei. There was no information on the size of the bounty in Chinese state media. Chinese authorities accused Taiwan of organizing, planning and premeditating attacks on key sectors such as military, aerospace, government departments, energy and transportation, maritime affairs, science and technology research firms in China as well as in special administration regions Hong Kong and Macau, Xinhua said. Xinhua, citing a cybersecurity report, said the Taiwan "information, communication and digital army" has cooperated with U.S. anti-Chinese forces to conduct public opinion and cognitive warfare against China, secretly instigate revolution and attempt to disrupt public order in China. Taiwan's government did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A senior Taiwan security official told Reuters that the Chinese allegations were invented, saying Beijing was trying to shift the focus from Czech and European scrutiny over alleged Chinese hacking activities there. "They fabricated a false narrative to shift the focus. It's a very typical behavior by the Chinese Communist Party," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity given the sensitivity of the matter. "No amount of storytelling can change the fact that Beijing is not only a regional trouble maker, but also a common international threat to the online world." China also said Taiwan had longstanding cooperation with the U.S. National Security Agency, the Central Intelligence Agency and other intelligence agencies for the United States' "Asia-Pacific Strategy", calling it Taiwan's attempt to gain independence through relying on the United States. "The US intelligence department has long provided personnel training and technical equipment support for Taiwan's 'information, communication and digital army', and many police stations have sent 'hunting' teams to Taiwan, to launch a cyber attacks on China," according to a social media post by an account linked to Chinese state television. Last week authorities in Guangzhou, the capital of the southern Guangdong province, attributed a cyberattack on an unnamed technology company to the Taiwan government, saying Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party supported the "overseas hacker organisation" responsible. The accusation prompted Taiwan to blame China for peddling false information, saying it was China who was carrying out hacking against the island. China views Taiwan as its own territory. Taiwan's democratically elected government rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims. Chinese courts and legal bodies have no jurisdiction in separately governed Taiwan, whose government has repeatedly complained about Beijing's "long armed jurisdiction" efforts. © Thomson Reuters 2025.
Straits Times
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Chinese authorities issue bounty for hackers said linked to Taiwan
FILE PHOTO: A man holds a laptop computer as cyber code is projected on him in this illustration picture taken on May 13, 2017. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel/Illustration/File Photo BEIJING - The public security bureau in the Chinese city of Guangzhou has put up an undisclosed bounty for more than 20 people it suspects carried out cyber attacks in China, the official news agency Xinhua said on Thursday. The authorities said the hackers were linked to the Taiwan government and named one of them as Ning Enwei. There was no information on the size of the bounty in Chinese state media. Chinese authorities accused Taiwan of organising, planning and premeditating attacks on key sectors such as military, aerospace, government departments, energy and transportation, maritime affairs, science and technology research firms in China as well as in special administration regions Hong Kong and Macau, Xinhua said. Taiwan's government did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Xinhua, citing a cybersecurity report, said the Taiwan "information, communication and digital army" has cooperated with U.S. anti-Chinese forces to conduct public opinion and cognitive warfare against China, secretly instigate revolution and attempt to disrupt public order in China. Last week authorities in Guangzhou, capital of the southern Guangdong province, attributed a cyberattack on an unnamed technology company to the Taiwan government, saying Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) supported the "overseas hacker organisation" responsible. The accusation prompted Taiwan to blame China for peddling false information, saying it was China who was carrying out hacking against the island. China views Taiwan as its own territory. Taiwan's democratically elected government rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims. Chinese courts and legal bodies have no jurisdiction in separately governed Taiwan, whose government has repeatedly complained about Beijing's "long armed jurisdiction" efforts. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
