TechCrunch

According to financial documents released Tuesday, Tesla CEO Elon Musk sold 934,090 company shares valued at around $ 1.02 billion not to fund a McMansion on Mars.Musk said he is preparing to pay the biggest tax bill in history.

With an estimated value of more than $ 275 billion, Musk is the richest person in the world.
As ProPublica revealed in a report earlier this year, Musk has not yet paid large sums of money in personal taxes, given that they alone pay taxpayers' income or share taxes as soon as they do.
After exercising options to purchase nearly 1.6 million Tesla shares at an exercise price of $ 6.24 per share (given to him in his 2012 compensation package), Musk's stake in Tesla rose to more than 177 million shares.

Now Musk is expected to face the largest  individual tax bill in US history, with state and California income taxes estimated at $ 11 billion, according to CNBC
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After Musk was named  "Person of the Year" by Time Magazine, Senator Elizabeth Warren tweeted that the government should "amend the rigged tax code so that the person of the year actually pays taxes and stops taking advantage of everyone else."

Elon Musk sold another $ 1.02 billion in Tesla Inc. stock, moving closer to his goal of reducing his stake in the electric car maker by 10 percent. US Securities and Exchange Commission. 

Musk has been selling Tesla shares since asking his Twitter followers in November if he should sell some of his stake. Musk said in a tweet last week that he was "almost done" cutting his Tesla stake by 10 percent. The latest sale brings Musk's total number to about 15.6 million shares, for about $ 16.4 billion. 

You would have to sell around 17 million shares to get rid of 10 percent of your stake, provided your exposure excludes exercisable options.

Elon Musk seems to agree with many that hyper-secret cryptocurrency expert Nick Szabo could be Satoshi Nakamoto, the mysterious creator of the digital currency Bitcoin. 

"You can watch ideas evolve before Bitcoin was launched and see who wrote about those ideas," Musk told artificial intelligence researcher Lex Fridman on a podcast posted Tuesday when asked what he thought about the real ones Identity of Nakamoto thinks. 

The Tesla billionaire said that while he "obviously" doesn't know exactly who created Bitcoin, Szabo's theories seem central to the creation of cryptocurrency. "It seems that Nick Szabo is probably responsible for developing these ideas more than anyone," he said. “He says he's not  Nakamoto, but I'm not sure it's neither here nor there. 

But he seems to be  responsible for the ideas behind Bitcoin more than anyone. Bitcoin was first proposed by Satoshi Nakamoto in October 2008. , a pseudonym for what people thought it could be. 

In 2014, a team of linguists examined Nakamoto's bitcoin whitepaper along with the writings of Szabo and 10 other potential creators. They found the results undeniable. "It's mind-boggling," said the researchers, adding that none of the other possible writers were anywhere near as good.

A 2015 New York Times report also identifies the invention of bitcoin in Szabo, who has spoken publicly about the history of bitcoin and blockchain technology but  repeatedly  claims that he is the anonymous inventor of the digital asset. Another reason it is associated with Bitcoin is because of its origins. of the  cryptocurrency "Bit Gold" in 1998.

Source:Yahoo News

 The cyber espionage group APT (Advanced Persistent Threat) Blackwell has been targeting Japanese companies with a new type of malware that researchers call "Flag pro". Second level malware and run it. 

The chain of infection begins with a phishing e-mail that was developed for the target organization and pretends to be a message from a trusted partner.

 The e-mail contains a password-protected ZIP or RAR attachment with a Microsoft Excel file [.XLSM] linked to a malicious macro. Running this code creates an executable file in the Flag pro home directory. 

When it first runs, Flagpro connects to the C2 server over HTTP and sends the system identification details obtained by executing hard-coded operating system commands. 

In response, the C2 can send additional commands or a second-level payload that Flag pro can execute. 

Communication between the two is base64 encoded, and there is also a configurable delay between connections to avoid creating an identifiable operating model.

 Flagpro has been used against Japanese companies for more than a year, at the latest since October 2020, according to a report by NTT Security. 

The most recent samples the researchers were able to obtain are from July 2021. The target companies are from a variety of industries, including defense, media and communications technology. 

At some point in their analysis, NTT researchers noticed a new version of Flag pro that can automatically close relevant dialog boxes to make external connections that could reveal their presence to the victim. 

"In the Flag pro v1.0 implementation, if a dialog box titled 'Windows セ キ ュ リ テ ィ' appears when Flagpro is accessing an external site, Flagpro will automatically click the OK button to close the dialog box" explains NTT Security report. “This handling also works if the dialog is written in Chinese or English  indicates destinations are in Japan, Taiwan, and English-speaking countries.

 Blackwell APT is a lesser known player discovered by Trendier researchers in the summer of 2017 and has partnered with China. His typical targets are in Taiwan, although he has occasionally targeted companies in Japan and Hong Kong to steal technology.

 In February  2021, a report from Unit 42 linked  Blackwell to Waterbear Flag pro, another cyber espionage group believed to have the backing of the Chinese government like Apt, Black tech, Knowledge and Refinement to adapt their tools to new reports like this one, Flag pro is likely to be modified for more stealth use.

As the NTT report concludes, “Recently they (Blackwell) started using another new malware called Selfsame Loader and Spider RAT. “That means they are actively developing new malware. Defenders should be aware of the new indicators of exposure to new malware and follow all security best practices to maintain a strong defense against sophisticated threats like Blackwell.

Source: Bleeping Computer

 Another WhatsApp scam is circulating, this time aimed at parents. WhatsApp scammers pretend to be desperate children who need money right away.

 People in the UK have reportedly been defrauded of nearly £ 50,000 for this type of scam. 25 cases of fraud were reported between August and October, with victims losing pounds 48,356. 

A Bedford mom shared her WhatsApp exchange with a Bedford Facebook group to warn others.

"Hello mom, it's me. I have a new number, you can delete the old one, ”read the scammer's input text. 

Toni Parker, 53, thought her son had dropped his phone down the toilet and had a new phone number (Picture: Caters News)

When the woman asked who the unknown messenger was, they replied: “Your oldest and sweetest son xx. The scammer then stated that he had  a new phone and was "transferring everything", claiming that his banking app had banned him for 48 hours. 

“Very annoying because there is nothing I can do  about it. Can you possibly pay  me and I will get it back to you asap? I'm sorry to bother you with this, '' read the scammer's text message. However, instead of sending the money immediately, the woman called her daughter, who confirmed that she was not sending the messages.

When the woman realized she was being attacked by a conspiratorial impostor, she immediately warned others about the deception.

 This is not the first time such a tactic has been used to commit fraud on WhatsApp. In August, a nurse was cheated of £ 2,500 after a scammer impersonated her son. In September, WhatsApp users were warned of the scam that could see criminals steal thousands of them.

 'WhatsApp protects our users' personal messages with end-to-end encryption, but we want to remind people that we all have one.' We advise all users never to share their six-digit PIN code with anyone, not even with friends or family, and we recommend  all users configure two-step verification for added security.

In this review, which by. was published, a total of 33 names were listed as authors Advances in Biophysics and Molecular Biology (as of August 2018) The journal is peer-reviewed and fairly well cited.

 So not exactly a small or paid niche source for publication. Science writer Stephen Fleischfresser delves into  the backgrounds of two of the most famous scientists involved: Edward Steele and Chandra Wickramasinghe. Well worth reading.

 For a tl version; Dr. Steele is an immunologist known for his views on evolution based on the acquisition of genetic changes determined by the influence of the environment rather than random mutations in what he calls metalamarckism.

Wickramasinghe, on the other hand, has had a slightly less controversial career known for empirically confirming Sir Fred Hoyle's hypothesis that describes the production of complex carbon molecules in interstellar dust. Wickramasinghe and Hoyle were also  responsible for further space biology work. one is based on more than just the origins of organic chemistry. 

Hoyle Wickramasinghes (HW) thesis of cometary biology (cosmic biology) makes the rather simple claim that the direction of evolution was significantly influenced by biochemistry that did not begin on our planet. In Wickramasinghe's own words: “Comets are the carriers and distributors of life in the cosmos, and life on earth originated and developed as a result of input from comets.

 These inputs, argued Wickramasinghe, are not limited to a generous pinch of  amino acids that have been branded into the world. Neither do acids. Rather, they include viruses that infiltrate organisms and drive their evolution in completely new directions.

The report, entitled “Cause of the Cambrian Explosion: Terrestrial or Cosmic? and other viruses  to be released in meteoric debris may potentially add new DNA sequences to terrestrial genomes and cause further mutagenic changes within the germline and somatic genomes, ”the authors wrote.

 Before going any further, because that was the docile part during this period, a group of mollusks known as cephalopods first stretched  their tentacles under their shells and branched into an amazing variety of sizes and shapes in an amazingly short amount of time  and octopuses are as strange as the animals themselves,  in part because of their ability to manipulate their DNA in the blink of an eye.

 The authors of the article make the rather bold claim that these genetic oddities could be a sign of life from space, this time not from space viruses  but from the arrival of enter genomes frozen in stasis before they thaw in our warm waters.

"Thus the possibility that cryopreserved squid and/or octopus eggs, arrived in icy bolides several hundred million years ago should not be discounted," they wrote.

In his review of the article, University of Eastern Finland medical researcher Keith Baverstock admitted that there is much evidence  plausibly in line with HW's thesis, such as the strange timeline of virus emergence, but that is not how science comes Ahead. 

"I believe this paper justifies skepticism of the scientific value of stand alone theories of the origin of life," Baverstock argued at the time.

"The weight of plausible, but non-definitive, evidence, great though that might be, is not the point."

Although the idea is as new and exciting as it is provocative, nothing in the summary helps us better understand the history of life on earth than existing assumptions that give little  value to our evolutionary model.

 Perhaps science can handle a generous dose of madness from time to time. The magazine's editor, Denis Noble, admits that "more research is needed", which is a bit of an understatement.

 Room for discussion. "As space chemistry and biology grow in importance, it is appropriate for a journal devoted to the interface between physics and biology to stimulate discussion," said Noble.

"In the future, the ideas will surely become testable."

Just in case those tests confirm speculations, we recommend being well prepared for the return of our cephalopod overlords. Who knows when they'll want those eggs back?

 Elon Musk’s ex, singer Grimes, has sent rumour mills in overdrive with her latest Instagram 

Elon Musk's ex-singer Grimes got the rumors going with her latest Instagram post showing her with a prominent belly.
Grimes fans continued to speculate on Tuesday after the Player of Games singer's new photo showing an animated form of her. At one stroke, she repeated her first pregnancy announcement with Musk's chid.

Comments on the post ranged from "The Queen is Pregnant" to "OMG, pregnant again?" However, Grimes has yet to respond to speculation. in May 2020 after  two years of dating.

A post shared by ☘︎𝔊𝔯𝔦𝔪𝔢𝔰࿎ (@grimes)

The couple has since split and the Tesla CEO confirmed the split to Page Six in September 2021.
We're half apart, but we still love each other, see each other often, and have a very good relationship, "said Musk.

 Image Credit:CIPhotos via Getty Images

With the Omicron variant of Covid, it extends along the city and abroad, many people felt this week as the hope that their end of the pandemic had been plagued.

Although experts say that the widely recognized COVID-19 symptoms, coughing, fever or taste of smell or taste are still indicators for a possible infection, the researchers have found that the symptoms of Omicron can also be similar to those of a cold similarities.

The symptoms of the Delta variant were also compared to those of a cold, but some doctors said the cases of Omicron seen so far were particularly mild. A US study of around 750,000 people recently found that the five most common symptoms for both the Delta and Omicron variants currently are runny nose, headache, fatigue, sneezing, and sore throat.

However, in many people, Omicron also causes atypical symptoms that were not seen with previous variants. In a popular TikTok video this weekend, people currently suffering from the Omicron variant weighed down on their unusual symptoms, including nausea, less back pain, muscle pain, and even eye pain.

While coughs, headaches, and fever manifest themselves after four to five days of infection with older COVID strains, the incubation time of Omicron can be even shorter. Data on the latest variant of COVID, first spotted in Botswana and South Africa in mid-November, is still limited, but a recent study in Norway suggests an average three-day window between exposure to the Omicron variant and symptoms, which means that Omicron could spread faster, reports Jessica Mathews of Fortune.

Preliminary studies of the Omicron variant have shown that infections may be less severe than the Delta variant. However, it spreads faster. Last week, the World Health Organization announced that Omicron is spreading faster than any other strain before and that the variant is likely to be found in most countries, even if it has not yet been detected.

An analysis published last week by South African researchers found that the risk of hospitalization among adults with COVID19 was 29% lower in people with the Omicron variant compared to the first wave of infections in 2020, the fastest increase since May last year . Another study from Imperial College London found that the infection in the Omicron cases analyzed was no less severe than in the Delta variant.

Johnson and Johnson, Sputnik, and Sinopharm vaccines have also proven largely ineffective at protecting against Omicron, as studies have shown, and due to the large number of mutations in the variant, which health experts say can be significantly resistant to Pfizer and Moderna vaccines as well.

Experts say COVID infections experience a "winter surge" even without Omicron. There are currently an average of 83,000 new cases of COVID in the US every day, even with 61% of the population being vaccinated. On Friday, the seven-day national average of new daily cases topped 197,000, a 65% increase over the past 14 days, the New York Times reported. Deaths also increased by 3% during this period. The highest national average of daily falls was set in January 2021 at 251,232 in the days after the holidays.

Reasons for the increase in cases include people roaming the country as they did before the pandemic, spending more time indoors due to the cold outside temperatures, wearing fewer masks, and falling protection from vaccines and previous infections, Ali Mokdad,  professor of health sciences . from the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, he told NPR. With more and more people wanting to return to life as they were before the pandemic and the new variant is extremely contagious and vaccine resistant, the risk of infection is very real.

While Europe is still fighting the Delta variant, Omicron is spreading at a "rapid pace", European leaders are fighting to get the majority of their populations vaccinated and amplified as Omicron and COVID cases rise. of COVID19 cases with 121,371 infections in 24 hours. “[Omicron] is spreading at high speed and may be in danger of at least partially escaping our vaccines.

We know that our health  systems are currently overloaded, "said EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to reporters last week.

Shortly before the holidays, Cornell University closed his campus after he discovered 900 positive Covid cases, after the Bloomberg.stanford University, also his decision to return to online classes in the first two weeks of his winter quarters, because of the concern of the Omicron

Several major league sports have cut their seasons after the outbreaks, and many Broadway shows have closed, some even permanently. And companies continue to postpone their plans to return to the office indefinitely for fear of the new variant.
It gets worse when we move into the dead of winter, "said Anthony Fauci, senior medical advisor to the president, last week for the University of California Chamber of Commerce Foundation, especially for the unvaccinated.

 The box will be opened on Tuesday,
 said Virginia Governor Ralph Northam. Twitter

WASHINGTON: Workers dismantling a Confederate general's statue pedestal discovered a copper box believed to be buried 130 years ago, the second apparent time capsule unearthed at the site.

 Virginia Governor Ralph Northam tweeted along with pictures of the box. 

"This is probably the time capsule everyone has been looking for. According to an 1887 newspaper article, a time capsule hidden at the foot of the statue of General Robert E.Lee of the Army of Northern Virginia during the Civil War contained relics such as buttons and balls, Confederate currency, cards, a rare picture of assassinated President Abraham Lincoln in his coffin and other items, the box will open at 1:00 p.m. (1800 GMT) Tuesday, Northam said in a subsequent tweet, adding that it was "Experts believe there could be coins, books, buttons and even ammunition from the Civil War," he said. 

The statue's base was opened by Conservatives last week, but it clearly wasn't the capsule in that time the 1887 newspaper article because it contained three soaked books, a photo in a soaked cloth cover, and a coin.

 The items appeared to be memorabilia left for posterity by some of the workers who erected the statue. The time capsule found on Monday is roughly twice as big. Lee's statue in Richmond, the city of Virginia, which was the southern capital during the bloody conflict of 1861-65, was overthrown in September, one of several memorials the Pro-Slavery Confederation has seen in recent months. The statue became the focus of protests against racial justice last year after the death of George Floyd, a black man killed by a white Minnesota police officer. During the Civil War, the Confederate southern states separated from the United States and fought to maintain slavery, which the rest of the country had abolished.

Both Squid Game director Hwang Dong Hyuk and Netflix have discussed their plans for future seasons of the hit series.

On December 28th, Hwang Dong Hyuk participated in an interview with KBS in which he spoke about it “I’m currently in the midst of discussions with Netflix about Season 2 and Season 3 [of ‘Squid Game’].”
“I think we’ll be reaching some sort of conclusion [to our discussions] soon,” continued the director. “We know that many people are waiting, so everyone is working hard to prepare for the next season with a positive outlook.”

Hwang Dong Hyuk also revealed what will be the main storyline for Season 2. “The focus [of the season] will be the story of [Lee Jung Jae's character] Seong Gi Hun, who unravels [the secrets of the organization behind the game]." Split. "The overall story of season two will be the story of the people who have favourited Gi Hun and the people he chases.

Later that day, Netflix officially addressed the possibility of a third season of Squid Game, making it clear, "It is true that we are discussing a variety of possibilities for Squid Game, including producing a third season, but has nothing happens, but it's set in stone.
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Are you excited for season 3 of 'Squid Game'?

Source: Soompi

• Geologists made headlines in 2017 after their announcement of the discovery of Zealandia.
• It is a vast continent of 1.89 million sq miles (4.9 million sq km) and is around six times the size of Madagascar.
• Zealandia is a continent because of the kinds of rocks found there, despite that it is thin and is submerged.

In 1642, Abel Tasman, a skilled Dutch seaman who loved tough justice, was confident that there was a vast continent in the southern hemisphere  and  determined to find it.

He believed  he had discovered the great southern continent, obviously it was hardly a commercial utopia that he imagined and then never returned.
BBC reported that Tasman was just thankful, actually there was an undiscovered continent.

A group of geologists made headlines in 2017 when they announced the discovery of Zealandia - Te RiuaMāui in the Maori language. It's a vast continent measuring 1.89 million square miles (4.9 million square kilometers) and about six times the size of Madagascar, the announcer reported.

A post shared by BBC News (@bbcnews)

According to the BBC report, the world's encyclopedias, maps and search engines have long been dictated by the fact that there are only seven continents, but the team confidently informed the world that this was wrong.

After all, there are eight, and the latest addition is breaking all records as the smallest, slimmest and youngest in the world. The problem is that 94% is underwater and only a handful of islands like New Zealand emerge from their sea depths. It had been hiding in sight the whole time, "reported the BBC.

Andy Tulloch, a geologist on the New Zealand Crown Research Institute GNS Science, who turned into a part of the group that determined Zealandia, said: "This is an instance of the way some thing very apparent can take some time to uncover." This all is simply the begging as 4 years on, and the continent is as enigmatic as ever, it's far guarded beneath6,560 ft (2km) of water, BBC reported.

According to geologists, Zealandia is a continent due to the type of rock found there, although it is thin and underwater, the seabed consists more only of woody like basalt, while the continental crust consists more of igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks like granite, slate and Limestone.
According to the report, geologists still find the eighth continent very intriguing, it is still unclear how Zealandia managed to hold together when it is so thin and doesn't break up into tiny micro-continents.

Elon Musk been criticized on social media after China complains that its space station was forced to avoid collisions with satellites launched by its Starlink Internet Services project.

China submitted a document earlier this month to the UN's space agency saying that satellites from the Starlink division of Mr Musk's SpaceX  company had two "close encounters" with the Chinese space station on 1 July and 21 October

The incidents behind the complaints filed with the UN space agency have yet to be independently verified.

Starlink is a satellite Internet network owned by Elon Musk SpaceX.

Elon Musk is known in China, even though his Tesla electric car manufacturer has a growing review of regulatory authorities.

Starlink and the US have been heavily criticized on China's Weibo microblogging platform Twitter.

As news of the filing spread, users of the Chinese microblogging platform Weibo piled on, with one user saying Starlink satellites were "just a heap of space junk" and another describing them as "American space warfare weapons".

"The risks of Starlink are being gradually exposed, the whole human race will pay for their business activities."

China also accused the United States to bring astronauts in danger by ignoring obligations under the spaces' contracts.

The spokesman of the Foreign Ministry, Lijian, said that China requested the United States to act responsibly.

Scientists have voiced worries about the dangers of collisions in space and referred to as on global governments to percentage statistics about the predicted 30,000 satellites and different area particles which can be orbiting Earth.

SpaceX has already launched nearly 1,900 satellites as a part of the Starlink network, and plans to install thousands more.

Last month, the US space agency Nasa abruptly postponed a space walk from the International Space Station due to concerns about space debris.

A global team of scientists has discovered antibodies that can kill the variant responsible for the rise of Omicron around the world. In addition, the scientists claim that these antibodies can neutralize other variants of Covid19 as well.

According to one of the study researchers, David Veesler of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the University of Washington School of Medicine, the antibodies work by targeting areas of the virus spike protein that are unchanged by mutations. Protein, scientists can develop vaccines and antibody treatments that  work not only against the Omicron variant, but also against any mutation that may occur in the future.

The Omicron variant of the coronavirus has 37 mutations in its spike protein, which is considered an unusually high number for a virus. For this reason, countries like the US and UK are urging citizens to get a booster dose (a third vaccination) to increase the body's antibody response in the event of infection. Studies have shown that the variant, while  less fatal, is more transmissible and able to evade the protection offered by vaccines designed with previous variants in mind.

Why the virus keeps mutating

If the virus continues to mutate (which it won't if the vaccine inequality is not addressed), one day a more deadly and  transmissible variant could emerge that could spark another  wave of infections like the one seen during the Delta wave in India.

The researchers also found that the Moderna, Pfizer / BioNTech, and AstraZeneca (Covishield) vaccines offered some  protection against Omicron, unlike Sputnik V, Sinopharm, and Johnson and Johnson, which did not show the ability of Omicron to penetrate cells prevent. 

Rumor has it that the company is set to announce some new Macs. Over the past year, Apple has updated its entry-level computers with new custom-designed M1 chips. And now, the company could bring its own chips to higher-end computers, such as a 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro, a new Mac Mini and a 27-inch iMac.

Apple could use this opportunity to redesign its laptops from the ground up with new display technologies, a new array of ports and a new form factor in general. But that’s not all. Apple has also been working on an updated version of its entry-level AirPods.

You can watch the livestream directly on this page, as Apple is streaming its conference on YouTube.

If you have an Apple TV, you can open the TV app and look for the ‘Apple Special Event’ section. It lets you stream today’s event and rewatch old ones.

And if you don’t have an Apple TV and don’t want to use YouTube, the company also lets you livestream the event from the Apple Events section on its website. This video feed now works in all major browsers — Safari, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge and Google Chrome.

Source: Tech crunch

To access the data of unsuspecting users, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could take advantage of a universal authentication process that is believed to be secure but may not actually be, cybersecurity experts warned, although encryption is still the preferred method of protecting digital data and Protection of computers - in some cases, the same digital certificates used for internet authentication allow the Chinese regime to infiltrate and wreak havoc on various computer networks, they said. 

Digital certificates that verify the identity of a digital entity on the Internet. A digital certificate can be compared to a passport or driver's license, according to Andrew Jenkinson, CEO of cybersecurity company Cybersec Innovation Partners (CIP) and author of the book Stuxnet to Sunburst: 20 Years of Digital Exploitation and Cyber ​​Warfare. 

"Without it, the person or device you are using may not meet industry standards, and the encryption of critical data could be bypassed so that what should be encrypted remains in plain text," Jenkinson told The Epoch Times Used to Encrypt internal and external communications that prevent a hacker, for example, from intercepting and stealing data. But "fake certificates" or invalid certificates can tamper with any data. 

Sense of security, "said Jenkinson. Cybersecurity firm Global Cyber ​​Risk LLC said digital certificates are generally issued by trusted CAs and then the same level of trust is passed on to intermediaries However, there are opportunities for a communist entity, malicious actor, or other untrustworthy entity to issue certificates to other "hideous people" who appear trustworthy but are not, he said.

"If you issue a certificate from a trusted authority, you will trust it," said Duren. "But what the issuer could actually do is pass that trust on to someone who shouldn't be trusted. Duren said he would never trust." a Chinese certification authority for this reason, stating that it is aware of a number of companies that have banned Chinese certificates because they were issued to untrustworthy agencies. 

Jenkinson said that Chinese certification bodies make up a small portion of the overall industry and the certificates they issue are generally limited to Chinese companies and products.

 In 2015, certificates from China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), the state agency overseeing domain name registration in China, were challenged. Mozilla revoked CNNIC certificates because it knew of unauthorized digital certificates associated with multiple domains. Both Internet companies opposed CNNIC delegating its authority to issue certificates to an Egyptian company that issued the unauthorized certificates. According to Jenkinson, CNNIC certificates were banned because they had "back doors". 

A back door means that [the Chinese certification body] could literally take administrative access and send data back to the mothership, ”he said. Since 2016, Mozilla, Google, Apple and Microsoft have also blocked the Chinese certification authorities WoSign and their subsidiary StartCom due to unacceptable security practices.Vulnerability Despite these bans on Chinese digital certificates in recent years, the CCP has not been deterred and has long-term gambling, Jenkinson said, referring to an alarming discovery by his cybersecurity firm two years ago that it was a multinational consulting firm. 

Digital certificates are typically valid for a few years depending on the certification authority, and a renewal is required to keep them valid and keep the data they are supposed to protect secure, he said. "But in 2019, CIP Chinese discovered certificates that had been valid for 999 years," Jenkinson said. His company made this discovery by researching the laptops of a leading global consulting firm. 

Jenkinson made the company aware of the vulnerability and offered, "They are either incredibly accommodating or complicit," he said, noting that the company's customers include government agencies.This multi-billion dollar company's failure to fix this problem means hundreds of thousands of people could be exposed to Chinese infiltration through the company's lax safeguards, Jenkinson said. The company engages its customers every time someone uses one of its laptops, he said. 

Companies or customers who use the company's services could be held for ransom, they have their intellectual advantages

Katey Sagal played one of the most important characters in Sons of Anarchy, but what has she done since the show came to an end? In 2008, Kurt Sutter took the audience to a small town in California to meet a motorcycle club and all the drama in their daily lives in the TV series Sons of Anarchy. The series premiered on FX in 2008 and lived on for a total of seven seasons, coming to an end in 2014. Sons of Anarchy got positive reviews throughout its whole run, with most praise going towards the themes it addressed (such as corruption and racism) and the performances of the main cast.

Sons of Anarchy tells the story of Jackson “Jax” Teller (Charlie Hunnam), VP of the motorcycle club Sons of Anarchy in the fictional town of Charming, California. The series kicks off when Jax finds a manifesto written by his late father, John “JT” Teller, one of the founding members of the MC. In it, JT shared his plans and vision for the club, which were very different from those of the current President and Jax’s stepfather, Clay Morrow (Ron Perlman). Reading his father’s ideas and seeing how different the club was, among other events, send Jax on a personal journey that leads him to question his path, role in the club, relationships, family, and more. Sons of Anarchy also introduced the audience to Gemma Teller-Morrow (Katey Sagal), Jax’s mother and the matriarch of the club, who even though wasn’t a member of it, had a lot of influence in it and the town in general, but she was also a very dangerous woman.

Katey Sagal’s role as Gemma in Sons of Anarchy was one of the most praised elements of the series, and she was one of the few characters from the first season who made it to the final one, though not to the series finale, as she was killed by Jax in the second last episode. Gemma Teller has become one of Sagal’s most memorable roles, but it definitely isn’t her most famous one, as she has played a variety of characters before and after Sons of Anarchy. Prior to living in Charming, Sagal did a lot of voice work in film, such as in Recess: School’s Out (playing Mrs. Flo Spinelli) and the Futurama movies, voicing Turanga Leela. In TV, she became known for playing Peggy Bundy in the sitcom Married… with Children from 1987 to 1997, and other notable roles include Edna Hyde in That 70’s Show and Cate S. Hennessy in 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter.

While working on Sons of Anarchy, Sagal continued doing voice work, most notably in Futurama, and once the show came to an end, she explored other genres in TV. Sagal played Annora of the Alders in The Bastard Executioner, Penny’s mother in one episode of The Big Bang Theory, and Lanie Schultz in This Is Us. Sagal reprised her role as Gemma in one episode of Mayans M.C, the spinoff series of Sons of Anarchy, and after that, she went on to play Dr. Ingrid Jones in Shameless, Louise Goldufski in The Conners, Teresa Williams in Grand Hotel, and Eleanor Hale in Dead to Me. Her most recent work is in the legal comedy-drama Rebel, inspired by the life of Erin Brockovich, and in which she plays the lead role of Annie “Rebel” Bello. On the big screen, she played Lee Ann in There’s Always Woodstock, Katherine Junk in Pitch Perfect 2, and Louise Pazienza in Bleed for This.

In addition to an incredible acting career that has covered almost every genre, Katey Sagal has a musical career and released her first solo album in 1994, and she also contributed with at least one song per season in Sons of Anarchy. Katey Sagal is a woman of many talents, and while many will always remember her as Gemma Teller-Morrow, it’s definitely worth checking out her other works in both film and TV.

Robert Pattinson’s Batman takes multiple bullets to the chest in the latest trailer for The Batman, indicating how bulletproof his version of the Batsuit is. Although he lacks superpowers, Batman fights crime in Gotham City with superlative fighting skills, a genius-level intellect, and state-of-the-art gadgetry. A common piece of equipment for live-action Batman adaptations is a Batsuit made of bulletproof material. Not all the Dark Knight's costumes have the same level of protection, so how does Pattinson’s suit compare to the others and the comic source material?

In his first comic book appearances, Batman wore no armor, using a simple, lightweight, and flexible costume with an intimidating appearance instead. One of the earliest uses of an armored Batsuit comes from the first standalone Batman book in 1940, in which the Caped Crusader survives a gunshot wound from The Joker thanks to a layer of armor underneath the main suit. Modern comic iterations of Batman wear fully armored Batsuits, offering significant protection against gunshots; partially inspired by the various film adaptations and their many shout-outs.

In the latest trailer for The Batman, Robert Pattinson’s Batsuit is put to the test multiple times. While fighting a gang of criminals in clown makeup, Batman is shot point-blank with a handgun, but he shrugs this off rather quickly and continues fighting. Later in the trailer, Batman walks towards a group of assault rifle-toting assailants, who pepper him with gunfire. Batman walks through the hail of bullets mostly unimpeded before counterattacking. This indicates that Pattinson’s Batman uses an extremely durable material that can withstand more gunfire than most versions of the Dark Knight.

While Adam West’s Batman wore no armor, Michael Keaton’s iteration in the Tim Burton films had a highly durable suit that could take direct gunshots. However, as shown multiple times in Batman and Batman Returns, while the suit kept gunfire from proving immediately lethal, the force often knocked Batman off his feet and left him winded on some occasions. Pattinson’s gear provides more protection, allowing him to remain in fighting condition even when shot numerous times.

Christian Bale’s first Batsuit in Batman Begins also offered protection from gunshots, though Lucious Fox explicitly advised against taking direct hits. While protective, the suit proved to be too restrictive, so Bale’s Bruce wore a modified` suit in The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises. Bale’s second Batman suit offered far more flexibility, though it was even more vulnerable to gunfire, which Bruce learned firsthand when facing off against Two-Face.

The only live-action Batman iteration whose suit provided similar levels of protection to Pattinson’s is the DCEU Batman. As shown in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Ben Affleck's Batman wears a light and flexible suit that allows him to take gunshots to the head at point-blank range with little impediment. The suit has some vulnerable points, as evidenced by an assailant’s knife puncturing the suit near the shoulder, but this may have been a lightly-armored area for the sake of articulation. Ben Affleck’s Batman armor, like Pattinson’s Batsuit in The Batman, is fully bulletproof, protecting Batman from gun-toting enemies.

The latest The Flash trailer suggests that Michael Keaton's Batman has a bigger role in the film than many initially assumed. Ezra Miller makes his DCEU return as the Scarlet Speedster after starring in Zack Snyder's Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League. Directed by Andy Muschietti, The Flash's first trailer was released at DC FanDome 2021, offering a sneak peek at what to expect from the standalone flick.

It's no secret that The Flash was in production limbo for quite some time with a few director changes. But, the movie finally kicked into production in 2021 and is currently filming. Specific plot details are still scant at the moment, although a few pertinent details have been confirmed. That includes the return of Kiersey Clemons as Iris West and the introduction of Sasha Calle as Supergirl/Kara Zor-El. Barry Allen is also joined by two Batman variations: the first one being Ben Affleck's and the other one being Michael Keaton's. Obviously there's a lot of excitement surrounding their involvement, but there's heightened anticipation about Keaton's Batman iteration simply because this is the first time he will reprise the superhero role in two decades.

Considering the fact that it's the Flash's solo outing, it was initially unclear how involved Keaton would be in the film. Set photos revealed him back as the Bruce Wayne persona, and the actor's personal interviews confirmed that he's indeed wearing the cape and the cowl again. Still, with very little known about the movie's plot, there were questions about the extent of his appearance. Some argued that it wouldn't be anything more than an extended cameo, with the primary focus on Barry Allen instead. This makes sense since he is the movie's headlining character. However, The Flash's trailer suggests that Batman's role in the film is going to be more prominent than initially perceived; much of the trailer focuses on him, including both versions of the Flash visiting Tim Burton's Wayne Manor and then, his Batcave. It even ends with the tease of the 1989 Batmobile reveal.

Interestingly, despite all the references to Keaton's Caped Crusader, the hero doesn't properly appear in The Flash trailer. Instead, there's only a shot of his iconic cowl looking outside the Batcave. But, the fact that he provides the narration for the majority of the trailer further indicates the extent of his appearance. At one point, it seems like the two Barry Allens and Supergirl recruit him for a mission, and it's safe to say that he at least considers joining his fellow DC heroes in the movie. It's worth noting that The Flash appears to be an adaptation of the Flashpoint storyline from the comics. Barry's time-traveling likely fractured space-time which has had ripple effects in other universes, including that of Supergirl and Keaton's Batman. The voice-over dialog is Bruce Wayne making sense of everything that's happening.

The question now is, how does Affleck's Batman fit into all of this? Based on what's known about The Flash production, the actor didn't start to film his scenes until the middle of principal photography. Some theories suggest that Affleck's Batman dies in the movie, and that it could serve as motivation for Barry's time travel. Furthermore, many are also curious if Affleck's version of the hero will cross paths with Keaton's Caped Crusader. Fans will likely have to wait for the movie's debut to find out.

Warning: The following contains SPOILERS for Supergirl season 6, episode 15, "Hope For Tomorrow."

The Supergirl season 6 episode "Hope For Tomorrow" enhanced the story of the Superman movie Superman 4: The Quest For Peace in every respect. The final movie to star Christopher Reeve as Kal-El of Krypton, Superman 4 is widely considered to be the worst of the classic Superman films. Given that, it would be all but impossible for Supergirl to revamp The Quest For Peace and not improve it, but the episode "Hope For Tomorrow" successfully addressed nearly every common complaint about the movie.

The central storyline of the second half of Supergirl season 6 found Kara Zor-El (Melissa Benoist) competing with the exiled 5th Dimensional Princess Nyxly (Peta Sergeant) for control of seven magical totems, tied to the seven cosmic forces of Hope, Love, Courage, Humanity, Dreams, Destiny and Truth. Each totem required its wielder to pass a test proving their mastery of each force. The Test of Hope in the Supergirl season 6 episode "Hope For Tomorrow" proved particularly difficult, as it required the victor to "inspire a hope that burns longer and brighter than the sun." While this might ordinarily have been an easy task for Supergirl, this test came at a time when nuclear war seemed imminent between the nations of Kaznia and Corto Maltese and hope was in short supply.

The story of Superman 4: The Quest For Peace, was likewise based around the fear of nuclear war and Superman acting to end the threat after receiving a letter from a concerned boy. Sadly, the movie did so poorly it sunk any chance of a Superman 5. While the story of Superman 4 made a noble effort to tackle a serious issue, the film suffered from budget cuts and editing issues that eliminated most of the film's more thoughtful moments in favor of recycled flight scenes and nonsensical padding. The Supergirl season 6 episode "Hope For Tomorrow" takes most of the story elements from Superman IV and builds upon the base concepts to create something far better.

Roughly halfway through the Supergirl season 6 episode "Hope For Tomorrow," Lena Luthor (Katie McGrath) asked the same question as the worried boy in Superman 4: The Quest For Peace; why can't Supergirl just take away all the nuclear weapons and throw them into the sun? Kara gave the same basic answer as Superman in the movie, saying that she was "forbidden from interfering in human history." However, Kara further explained to her friend Lena Luthor that human nations needed to be free to determine their own destinies without some all-powerful alien imposing their beliefs on them. Kara also pointed out that even if she could get rid of all the nuclear weapons in the world, it wouldn't solve the conflicts that lead to war. (Ironically, Kara did wind up having to throw several nuclear missiles into the sun before the episode's end.)

This point was driven home by another scene, in which the United States diplomat overseeing the peace talks between Kaznia and Corto Maltese asked J'onn J'onzz (David Harewood) to use his telepathic powers to make the leaders of the two delegations sign a peace treaty. The Martian Manhunter refused, saying that while he was glad to use his powers to pacify the two leaders after Nxyly used the Totem of Courage to make them afraid of looking weak during the negotiations, he refused to directly control their actions. Both of the Supergirl scenes did a far better job of showing why heroes have a responsibility not to use their powers than every speech Superman made regarding that point in Superman 4: The Quest For Peace.

The Supergirl season 6 episode "Hope For Tomorrow" featured a subplot that centered around Esme, a foster child adopted by Alex Danvers/Sentinel (Chyler Leigh) and Kelly Olsen/Guardian (Azie Tesfai), and the Super Friends' efforts to help the young girl get acclimated to her new home. A victim of an abusive situation in her previous foster home, Esme was shy and fearful of being sent back to the group home she had been in. Restoring Esme's hope in the future went beyond being a test of Supergirl's ability to inspire hope and became a test for the whole team, as well as a central part of the theme of "Hope For Tomorrow." By contrast, despite being the inspiration of Superman's effort to bring an end to nuclear war in Superman 4: The Quest For Peace, the boy who wrote to Superman disappeared from the movie after Superman took him to the United Nations to hear him speak.

Originally set up as a romantic interest for Kara Danvers in Supergirl season 5, reporter William Dey (Staz Nair) has been one of the more divisive characters created for the Arrowverse, with many fans finding the character annoying and wondering what purpose he served after he and Kara agreed to be just friends in Supergirl season 6. Comparisons could be drawn between William Dey and Lacy Warfield (Mariel Hemingway) whose only purpose in Superman 4: The Quest For Peace was acting as a hostage and pushing an unconvincing love triangle between herself, Lois Lane and Clark Kent. However, the Supergirl season 6 episode "Hope For Tomorrow" redeemed William, who was far from a passive figure after being taken captive by Nyxly. Indeed, it was William's quick thinking that enabled the Super Friends to take the Totem of Courage away from Nyxly.

While Superman 4: The Quest For Peace saw legendary actor Gene Hackman return as Lex Luthor, his role in the film was far from extensive. Apart from creating the monstrous Nuclear Man, Luthor had surprisingly little to do with the action of the film and most of his scenes were comedic non-sequiturs. By contrast,  the Arrowerse Lex Luthor does not appear on camera in the Supergirl season 6 episode "Hope For Tomorrow," but nevertheless had a major impact on the episode's final scene.

As "Hope For Tomorrow" came to a close, Supergirl elected to throw the Totem of Hope into the sun, knowing that Nxyly needed all seven totems as part of her scheme to defeat Supergirl and the Super Friends. Shortly after Nxyly learned what Supergirl had done, a box fell through a portal in front of her. The box contained a watch and a note from a secret admirer telling her not to "lose hope." When Nyxly put on the watch, it formed one of Lex Luthor's trademark armored Lexo-Skeletons around her, revealing the identity of her mysterious new ally in a clever fashion. It was certainly more subtle than most of Gene Hackman's scenes trolling Superman in Superman 4: The Quest For Peace. This, coupled with the other connections throughout the episode, highlight how Supergirl was able to successfully revitalize the failed film's story arc.

Sony’s upcoming Sinister Six movie should take some inspiration from Spider-Man: No Way Home and introduce a new version of Miles Morales. Sony has had plans for a Sinister Six film since The Amazing Spider-Man film franchise was in progress. The second film, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, ended with a clear setup for the villain team, with the Green Goblin (Harry Osborn) and The Gentleman (Gustav Fiers) equipping allies (and possibly members) of Oscorp with advanced weapons and devices. The plans, unfortunately, never came to fruition, but Sony’s new villain-focused Spider-Man universe, which began with 2018’s Venom, has led to new plans for the iconic team.

Miles Morales - whose comic debut was in 2011’s alternate universe Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man - is his reality’s second web-slinger, taking Peter Parker’s place after his apparent death in a final confrontation with the Green Goblin. Miles and his stories were well-received, quickly growing in popularity among readers, and he made his cinematic debut in 2018’s animated film, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. As the star of numerous comics, an animated film, and a recent video game, it won’t be long before Miles has his long-awaited live-action debut.

With Sinister Six reportedly being the endgame of Sony’s Spider-Man films, it’s reasonable to assume that the movie will be a crowd-pleasing epic with more than one payoff. Sony will reportedly work alongside Marvel Studios to tie their film in with the MCU, meaning that Tom Holland’s classic Peter Parker Spider-Man may face off against the six villains. Although Spider-Man was often on his own against the six in the comics, the film can easily justify introducing a second Spider-Man to even the odds and give viewers a live-action Miles Morales simultaneously.

Not only is Sony and Marvel Studious working together on the Sinister Six film, but the multiverse will be unleashed in the upcoming No Way Home. While the Miles Morales who appears in the Sony film could be their iteration, he might alternatively be from the MCU, creating a new kind of character dynamic for Tom Holland’s Spider-Man, who’s typically mentored by characters like Iron Man or Doctor Strange.

The Sinister Six’s villain roster can be comprised of characters from multiple realities as well. In addition to introducing the first live-action iteration of Miles Morales, the film can bring back actors like Alfred Molina, Jamie Foxx, and Willem Dafoe for yet another performance. With No Way Home bringing the iconic villains back, Sony could take advantage of their fan-favorite status, adding to the already crowd-pleasing introduction of Miles.

Spider-Man: No Way Home will be the first live-action Spider-Man movie to use the multiverse for crossovers. In addition to bringing back characters from bygone film eras, they’ve also allowed for interaction with Sony’s Spider-Man universe. If Sony intends to make the Sinister Six film their franchise’s endgame, they’d make it an even more effective grand finale by bringing in Miles Morales.