Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has started utilizing a mobile application named Mobile Fortify, which allows agents to identify individuals by scanning their faces or capturing fingerprints. This app integrates with various government databases, including those maintained by Customs and Border Protection and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in an effort to match images against previously collected data. While ICE asserts the tool will assist in identifying "unknown subjects," civil liberties advocates have raised concerns about its potential for fostering surveillance-driven profiling and wrongful arrests. Nathan Freed Wessler of the ACLU warned that the technology is notoriously unreliable and can lead to numerous wrongful arrests, highlighting the necessity for congressional authorization for such use.
In other news, a group of alleged hackers has been charged in connection with Breachforums, a known cybercriminal forum. French authorities arrested several individuals linked to years of data breaches, while the U.S. Justice Department formally charged a British man for a hacking spree that inflicted significant damage, totaling $25 million.
The hacking group Scattered Spider, previously focused on sectors like grocery and insurance, is now shifting its attention to the aviation industry. Recent incidents include a cybersecurity issue with Canadian airline WestJet and an ongoing situation at Hawaiian Airlines, although the specifics regarding the perpetrators remain unclear.
Additionally, a peculiar incident was reported where hackers managed to breach the control systems of a dam in Norway, opening a valve at full capacity. Fortunately, the tampering did not reach critical levels and was only discovered hours later, primarily due to a weak password on the system.
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