Cyber attacks in Estonia threaten national security
March 21st, 2023 | Uncategorized |
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Recent cyber attacks in Estonia that have paralyzed the high tech country’s Web sites are a threat to national security, according to the country’s Minister of Defense. This has concerned NATO, seeing that Estonia is a member state of the organization. The attacks have subsided this week.
The Defense Minister Jaak Aaviksoo also mentioned that Russia may have been behind the attacks. He stated that the IP numbers in the initial attack belong to Russian government offices, but says that it’s insufficient evidence that the government is behind it. The Kremlin is dismissing the accusations, saying that its caused by hackers producing fake Kremlin IP addresses.
The cyber attacks came after Estonia removed a Soviet-era statue of a Bronze Soldier in Tallinn, which angered many Russians. Riots have left 160 injured, and 1 dead.
Both NATO and the European Union views this as an attack on one of their member states. Three hundred Estonian IT specialist worked day and night to fix the problem.
The Estonian government plans to analyze server logs and data to find out who is behind the attacks.
With the current drop in property value, interest rates for mortgage loans also took a dive. My friend, Jasper, knew that this would be the perfect opportunity to refinance his home that he bought a few years ago. When he bought his home, Jasper signed up for a 5/1 adjustable rate home loan with Chase bank. Basically the rate would be fixed for the first five years after which the annual percentage rate would change every year. Jasper was still enjoying a low interest rate when he decided to refinance because the adjustment period was almost due and the current interest rate at the time was even lower than the rate he signed up for almost five years ago. So Jasper decided to take advantage of the situation and contacted a Chase refinance officer to present his case.
Jasper’s objective was to reduce his monthly expenses so he could have more ‘left over’ money at the end of the month. With the current interest rate at its lowest point, Jasper knew that refinancing his home with Chase refinance would help him save more money and improve his cash flow. So Jasper went to see the refinance officer at a local branch of Chase bank. Of course, he did not go there unprepared. He had already done his own research. The market rate for mortgage interest might have been at its lowest but if he did not have good credit rating he probably would not be able to enjoy such low rate. So he obtained his credit report from all of the big credit reporting bureaus to show the refinance officer that he had stable financial and credit situation.
However, Jasper was also aware that his credit rating was not in the Tier One category. If anything his credit score was simply decent at best. So he discussed with the officer on other factors that they may consider to determine his creditworthiness prior to approving his application to refinance Chase mortgage on his home. The advantage that he had was that he was already a client of Chase bank and he was never late in making his monthly payments so the bank would definitely take that into consideration. Jasper also did not hesitate to mention what other banks were offering him. Basically he was giving himself leverage and effortlessly convinced the officer why he deserved the best interest rate. After all, no bank would want to be outdone by other banks.
Once he was offered the lowest interest rate he could possible get, he requested that the officer provide him with a Good Faith Estimate. Then it was time to negotiate the fees. He pointed out to the officer that he was not going to refinance mortgages at some other bank so he asked to be exempted from having to pay several fees. Jasper was aware that high processing fees and closing costs would defeat the purpose of having a very low interest rate. So after much negotiations and even arguments, he was successful in obtaining what he went there to get in the first place; a mortgage refinance with low interest rate and cost. Jasper then filed his application along with all the relevant documents requested by Chase bank. He converted his 5/1 adjustable rate mortgage to a fixed rate mortgage with considerably low interest and cost.
Basically Jasper managed to take advantage of the low interest rate as he can now afford to save more money because he is paying less than what he started with. At the same time, he also managed to lower his debt-to-income ratio which would work to his advantage for future financial activities.
Firefighters were on the scene by 8:30 p.m. with fire trucks, paramedic units, surveillance helicopters, and water-equipped helicopters. Two fire trucks blasted water at the blaze from higher up on the mountain, while every minute or so, a water-equipped helicopter would swoop down over the flames and release its payload. At the top of the hill, there were five fire trucks and one paramedic unit; the three main entrances to the mountain were barricaded off by fire trucks.
By approximately 9:15 p.m., the flame was entirely extinguished, thanks mainly to the water-equipped helicopters. Firefighters were offering bystanders bottles of water and Gatorade to help combat the effects of standing near an open flame.
Thirteen Canadian soldiers sustained minor injuries yesterday when three light armoured vehicles (LAV III) smashed into each other in Kandahar, Afghanistan. The LAV IIIs are reported to have sustained minor damage.
Seven soldiers were taken to the Canadian-run provincial reconstruction base medical clinic. Six soldiers were transferred by air to the NATO hospital in Kandahar airfield.
The soldiers, who arrived in Afghanistan this month, are from the 2nd Battalion Royal Canadian Regiment and reserve units around Atlantic Canada..
“Our soldiers receive excellent training before they’re deployed to theatre, but I don’t think anything can quite fully prepare anyone for the nature of the roads here in Kandahar,” said a spokesman for the Canadian Forces, Major Dale MacEachern.
They are now safe and will return to their units in a couple of days.
Modbury Hospital, where the first case in South Australia’s COVID-19 cluster presented.Image: User:AussieHero.
With five active cases of the Delta variant of COVID-19, South Australia begun a one-week lockdown on Monday. Announcing the lockdown, state Premier Steven Marshall declared “we have no alternative but to impose some fairly heavy and immediate restrictions”.
The first case out of South Australia’s active cases was presented to Modbury Hospital on Sunday night, having returned from Argentina earlier this month. The fifth, which Premier Marshall noted as “far more worrying”, visited The Greek on Halifax restaurant at the same time as someone who was later confirmed to be carrying the virus. Chief Public Health Officer for the state Nicola Spurrier said “if anyone has been at The Greek on Halifax they need to get into quarantine and get tested”.
In accordance with new regulations, there are only five reasons for South Australians to leave home: essential work, shopping for essential goods such as food, exercise, but only with people from the same household and within 2.5 kilometers (2 mi) of home, medical reasons (which includes testing and vaccination against the coronavirus, but excludes elective and cosmetic surgery), and caregiving.
Schools have closed for all but children of essential workers, with online learning having begun on Thursday. Face masks are also be mandated for those who leave home. ABC News reported that “support for businesses is expected to be announced…”, with all non-essential retail required to close under the new regulations.
Credit repair takes finesse. There is much more to the job than just writing letters to the credit bureaus. In fact, as shocking as it seems, you can make a near perfect effort, but if you miss just a few subtle angles, your effort will produce no results at all! Here are the most important and most overlooked credit repair secrets you need to insure your success.
Doubt is Healthy
When you start your credit repair program you will need to examine your credit reports. Do not attribute any special level of competence to the credit bureaus. It is safer to assume that if anything looks even vaguely askew, there is a reporting error. Do not be afraid to dispute. Write your letter and put the onus on the credit bureaus.
Simplicity Pays
The person that will read your dispute letter will read approximately 150 other dispute letters in the working day, at an allotted pace of 3 minutes per dispute. They do not want to hear your life saga. Nor do they want to hear your interpretation of the reporting blunder. If you were not late, just say that you were not late. The golden rule of credit repair works; respect them and they will respect you.
On the other hand, even the most succinct credit repair letters are often rejected. Do not take it personally. It is a numbers game. Some may even tell you that a predetermined percentage of letters are turned away offhand without any research at all. These rejections will take the form of requests for extra identification or a generalized complaint about the frivolous nature of the dispute. If you get jilted, just take a deep breath and send your letter again.
Open New Accounts Soon
Time is money, and your credit scores matter. The FICO scoring model puts emphasis on accounts that are opened following a period of bad credit. And when you open a new account it can take six months for it to mature enough to yield the score benefit you want. Open new accounts now. If your credit is too poor to get the Platinum Visa Card of your dreams, start with two small secured cards. They are every bit as good for breathing life into your scores.
Manage Debt for Credit Repair Success
Once you have your new accounts open you need to manage them right. Paying your bills on time is just the start. For sure, you must never be late, but there is more. During your credit repair program, just follow this formula. Always keep a small balance on the card and never use more than twenty percent of the available limit. Small regular usage tells the scoring model that you are prudent and conservative. Before you know it they will raise your scores to tell prospective lenders that you are a good bet.
Save to Avoid Backsliding
There are a million unexpected expenses that can pop up, um, well, unexpectedly! I am sure that you know it well. From auto repairs to family necessities, there is no knowing what lies around the corner. It is wise to be prepared. You are making an investment in credit repair, now you must preserve it. Start a savings account. Set aside a little money every month and build a buffer against the little surprises that life sends us. With a little saving account you will be able to ride out financial storms with your credit intact and shining!
Copyright 2010 James W. Kemish. All Content. All Rights Reserved.
About the Author: Jim Kemish is the president and founder of Sky Blue Credit Repair, a leading
credit repair
service. Sky Blue Credit has been dedicated to providing intelligent customized credit solutions since 1989.
B2B Trade Area moved to 2nd floor this year. Image: Rico Shen.
B2B Trade Area of Taipei Game Show, criticized by trade buyers last year, but accompanied with 2008 Taiwan Digital Content Forum, moved to the second floor at Taipei World Trade Center for world-wide participants with a better exchange atmosphere this year.
Not only local OBMs (Softstar Entertainment, Soft-World International Corp., International Games System Corp., …, etc.) but also companies from New Zealand, Canada, Japan, Hong Kong, and South Korea showcased different specialists with multiple styles. Especially on South Korea, participated members from G? Trade Show (Game Show & Trade, All-Round, aka Gstar) showcased gaming industry of South Korea and the G? upcoming at this November with brochures.
Local participants showcased their excellences on brochures and posters. Image: Rico Shen.
In the 2-days Digital Content Forum, world-class experts not only shared industry experiences, members from Taiwan Gaming Industry Association also discussed and forecasted marketing models for gaming industry. With participations from governmental, industrial, and academical executives world-wide, this forum helps them gained precious experiences of digital content industry from several countries.
According to the Taipei Computer Association, the show and forum organizer, the digital content industry in Taiwan was apparently grown up recent years as Minister of Economic Affairs of the Republic of China Steve Ruey-long Chen said at Opening Ceremony yesterday. Without R&Ds from cyber-gaming, and basic conceptions from policies and copyright issues, this (digital content) industry will be fallen down in Taiwan. If this industry wanted to be grown up in sustainability, gaming OBMs in Taiwan should independently produce different and unique games and change market style to market brands and games to the world.
Zimmerman after being arrested in 2012. Image: Seminole County Sheriff’s Office.
George Zimmerman, a Florida man charged with the shooting of seventeen-year-old Trayvon Martin, was found not guilty of second-degree murder late Saturday night following 16 hours of deliberation. The case has drawn national attention in the United States because of questions it raises over “stand your ground” self-defense laws.
Zimmerman shot Trayvon Martin on February 26, 2012. Prosecutors argued that Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch captain, had pursued Martin on the basis of race, as Martin walked through Zimmerman’s gated community on the way back from a convenience store. Zimmerman’s lawyers argued Martin attacked Zimmerman who then shot Martin in self-defense after Martin punched him and repeatedly slammed Zimmerman’s head against the sidewalk.
Following the decision to acquit, by a six member all-female jury, of both a second-degree murder and a manslaughter charge, Zimmerman’s lawyer said: “I think the prosecution of George Zimmerman was disgraceful”. On Twitter, Zimmerman’s brother Robert said the decision made him “proud to be an American”.
Tracy Martin, Trayvon’s father, posted on Twitter to say “Even though I am broken hearted my faith is unshattered”. Jahvaris Fulton, Trayvon Martin’s brother, posted “Et tu, America?”, alluding to the Shakespearean phrase “Et tu, Brute?”
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) have launched a petition calling on the US government to bring federal civil rights charges against Zimmerman. NAACP president Benjamin Jealous stated, “We are outraged and heartbroken over today’s verdict. […] We will pursue civil rights charges with the Department of Justice, we will continue to fight for the removal of Stand Your Ground laws in every state, and we will not rest until racial profiling in all its forms is outlawed.”
Official photo portrait of Ben Nelson, Democratic Senator from Nebraska
A conservative Democratic United States senator has agreed to supply the key 60th vote needed for passage of a sweeping health care reform package. Senate Democrats have reached a breakthrough in their struggle to pass sweeping heath care reform legislation, lining up the 60 votes needed to overcome fierce Republican opposition. Senators met Saturday in Washington, D.C. during a driving snowstorm in a frenzied effort to move forward on President Barack Obama’s top domestic priority.
The spotlight was on moderate Democratic Senator Ben Nelson of Nebraska, who had been the last holdout as Senate Democrats raced against the clock and against determined Republican opposition to pass their health care bill by their self-imposed deadline of December 25th, Christmas.
Change is never easy, but change is what is necessary in America today and and that is why I intend to vote for cloture, I intend to vote for cloture and for health care reform.
Nelson said he is now ready to vote for cloture, which would advance the bill. “Change is never easy, but change is what is necessary in America today and and that is why I intend to vote for cloture, I intend to vote for cloture and for health care reform,” he said.
Nelson said he decided to support the bill after winning new concessions from Democratic Senate Majority LeaderHarry Reid to limit the availability of abortions in insurance sold under the new legislation along with millions of dollars in Medicaid funding for Nebraska.
The legislation would extend health benefits to more than 30 million uninsured Americans and impose new regulations on the health insurance industry.
Senator Reid of Nevada has been working for months to win over one holdout Democratic senator after another, repeatedly altering the bill to satisfy different demands. Reid says reform is essential. “The broken system cannot continue and it will not continue. When President Obama signs this bill into law, we will officially end the era in which insurance companies win only when patients lose,” he said.
The broken system cannot continue and it will not continue. When President Obama signs this bill into law, we will officially end the era in which insurance companies win only when patients lose.
Nelson’s support should pave the way for Senate Democrats to win the first of a series of crucial procedural votes scheduled to begin at one o’clock in the morning on Monday and set to conclude — if everything goes smoothly for them — with final passage on Christmas Eve.
Republicans have been using a number of parliamentary procedures to delay action on the bill, including forcing a reading on the Senate floor Saturday of Reid’s 338-pages of last minute amendments. Republican Senate Minority LeaderMitch McConnell of Kentucky responded to the apparent Democratic breakthrough. “And Democrats are forcing a vote on it, as I indicated, over the weekend, counting on the fact that the American people are preoccupied with Christmas and not paying much attention to what they are doing,” he said.
The history that is being made here, make no mistake about it, the history that is being made here, is the ignoring of the will of the American people.
Republicans are unified in their opposition, saying the bill is too expensive and will not solve the problems with the current health care system. Senator McConnell dismissed claims by Democrats that the bill is historic. “The history that is being made here, make no mistake about it, the history that is being made here, is the ignoring of the will of the American people,” he said.
Senator John McCain of Arizona echoed those comments in the weekly Republican radio address saying, “Regrettably, there’s nothing in this legislation that effectively addresses the problem of health care hyperinflation. In fact, experts tell us the Democrat legislation makes matters worse.”
Democrats say they have been trying to reform the nation’s health care system for close to 70 years, ever since President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was in office. Senator Christopher Dodd of Connecticut was emotional as victory seemed within reach. “All we are trying to do is to guarantee that if you are a fellow citizen of ours, and you are struck with illness or a loved one is, that you will never again have that fear, that you will end up losing your home, your job, your retirement and your life savings because you have been afflicted with an illness through no fault of your own.”
If the Senate is able to pass a bill next week, it would be viewed as a major victory for President Obama. But the bill would still need to be reconciled with a health-care reform bill passed last month by the House of Representatives before the president could sign it into law next year.
The Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism issued a statement Friday praising comments made Wednesday by Malaysian politician Datuk Seri Ong Ka Chuan on conversion to Islam. Malaysian Consultative Council president Datuk A. Vaithilingam said that Ong’s views are shared by Malaysians from all religious faiths in the country.
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Image: Daniel Berthold.
“Conversion to Islam should not be abused as a means to evade one’s legal obligations to one’s family. A person’s conversion to another religion should not cause pain and suffering for other members of the family,” said Vaithilingam. He asked state and federal government authorities to take necessary steps to fix loopholes in the law, so that Malaysians could freely practice religion in the country.
Conversion to Islam should not be abused as a means to evade one’s legal obligations to one’s family.
Ong is the current Minister of Housing and Local Government in the Malaysian cabinet, and also serves as the secretary-general of the {{w|Malaysian Chinese Association]] (MCA) and Perak MCA chairman. In his Wednesday statement, he said that individuals who convert to Islam through the marriage process should be permitted to renounce the religion if they leave the marriage. Ong also stated that the religion of a minor child with one Muslim parent should be determined by both parents, or remain the same until the child turns 18.
Ong said that issues involving divorce, custody of children and inheritance in matters of constitutional rights of non-Muslims had increased dramatically in the last three years. Ong emphasized the importance of civil law as related to non-Muslims in the country, as opposed to that of Syariah (Sharia), Islamic religious law.
We urge the Government to be transparent in this process.
“Non-Muslims are not to be subjected to any form of Syariah laws and for any disputes or overlapping areas involving the jurisdiction of civil and Syariah courts, civil laws must prevail. […] We urge the Government to be transparent in this process,” said Ong.
Ong’s comments were made as part of an 11-page motion of thanks on the royal address. His motion was seconded by Bintulu Minister of Parliament Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing. Ong also spoke about the corruption, education, crime and security and the economy in his two-hour speech.
Of the 27 million people in Malaysia, 60 percent are Muslim Malaysian Malays, 25 percent are Chinese and mainly Buddhists or Christians, and 7.8 percent are ethnic Indians and mainly Hindus.
