Facebook Instagram Linkedin X Youtube
Home Blog Page 4538

Sotto DNP-CD for the third time as Magic suffer OT loss to Knicks

KAI SOTTO — FACEBOOK.COM/ORLANDOMAGIC

THE TIME is ticking for Kai Sotto.

Mr. Sotto, the 7-foot-3 Filipino sensation, registered another DNP-CD (Did not play-Coach’s decision) for the third straight game as the Orlando Magic found it elusive to score their first win in the NBA Summer League.

Orlando absorbed a tough 82-80 loss against the New York Knicks yesterday at the Thomas and Mack Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada — with no sighting of Mr. Sotto once again.

The Magic are now 0-3 after previous losses to the Detroit Pistons, 89-78, and the Indiana Pacers, 108-85, heading into battle against the Portland Trailblazers today. As per the Summer League schedule released last week, the Magic still have a game left against a fifth team but it’s still to be determined.

That would give Mr. Sotto, whose camp opted for the Magic invitation with the best situation for him in the Summer League, at least two chances in a bid to earn his stripes and move closer to his NBA dream.

But it remains to be seen, especially after spending his time on the bench in the first three games.

Orlando has a 22-man roster for the Summer League featuring Mr. Sotto as the tallest. For the first three games though, coach Dylan Murphy has utilized a short rotation from 10 to 11 players only. Murphy fielded 10 players against the Pistons, 11 versus the Pacers then 10 again opposite the Knicks.

Jett Howard, the No. 11 pick, had 22 points to pace the Magic in a narrow loss to the Knicks courtesy of Jaylen Martin’s game-winner, while No. 6 pick Anthony Black had eight points and 14 rebounds, including the game-tying tip-in to force overtime (OT).

Orlando takes on Portland at 9 a.m. today and the Filipino fans around the world could only hope to finally get a chance to show his worth. — John Bryan Ulanday

Carlos Alcaraz douses Holger Rune fireworks to reach Wimbledon semifinals for first time

CARLOS ALCARAZ — EL HORMIGUERO/FLICKER

LONDON — It was billed as the battle of the 20-year-olds but Carlos Alcaraz pulled rank on his childhood buddy Holger Rune as he doused the Dane’s fireworks to reach the Wimbledon semifinals for the first time with a 7-6(3) 6-4 6-4 victory on Wednesday.

The two tyros, who were born six days apart, were contesting a men’s Wimbledon quarterfinal that for the first time in the professional era featured two players aged under 21.

Despite his youth, Mr. Alcaraz is already at home among the elite of men’s tennis and produced the form that has carried him to the top of the rankings by never allowing Rune to gain the upper hand, no matter how many flashy shots the Dane conjured.

“It’s amazing for me, a dream since I started playing tennis. It’s a dream to be able to play a semi-final here,” Mr. Alcaraz said after setting up a semi-final showdown with Russian third seed Daniil Medvedev on Friday.

“I am playing at a great level, I didn’t expect to play such a great level on this surface. For me, it is crazy,” added the Spaniard who has been more at home on clay and hard courts.

After saving a break point in the opening game of the match, Mr. Alcaraz put on a majestic performance in front of Britain’s Queen Camilla to end Rune’s hopes of becoming the first Danish player in 65 years to reach the All England Club semifinals.

Sixth seed Mr. Rune certainly won most of the crowd-pleasing points, whether it was a tweener between the legs or a stupendous reflex volley he hit at the net after Mr. Alcaraz had dashed back to the baseline to retrieve a lob.

But the top seed, already in the Grand Slam winner’s club after triumphing at the US Open last year, refused to get flustered and kept winning the points that mattered.

The look of utter disgust on Mr. Rune’s face when he hit a double fault to go 4-3 down in the first set tiebreak summed up his feelings.

Mr. Alcaraz pounced on that mistake to win four points on the trot and let out an ear-splitting scream in the direction of his box as he sealed the set with a thundering service return winner.

BREAK POINT
Rune tried his best to get the crowd behind him, as he raised his arms to urge the fans to pump up the volume on Centre Court.

But seconds later he was left red-faced and staring into the turf in disbelief when he spectacularly smashed the ball into the net despite having an open court at his disposal.

That handed Mr. Alcaraz his first break point of the match and the Spaniard gleefully pocketed the game with a yet another scorching service return.

That wobble from Mr. Rune was enough for Mr. Alcaraz to run away with the set and from then on he proved to be unstoppable, with the Spaniard breaking again in the fifth game of the third.

After Mr. Alcaraz failed to convert his first three match points, including a double fault on one of them, he sealed victory when Mr. Rune slapped a service return long.

The two friends, who grew up playing doubles together as baby-faced boys, shared a warm embrace at the net before the Spaniard leaned back and let out an almighty roar into the skies – showing just how much this win meant to him.

“At the beginning I was really nervous playing in the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, but even more against Rune,” said Mr. Alcaraz, who has already won 12 titles in his young career.

“Someone the same age as me playing a great level. It was tough to play against him but once you get into the quarterfinals there are no friends.

“You have to be focused on yourself and I think I did great in that part.” — Reuters

Tolentino grabs a spot in 110m hurdles after clocking 13.70s

JOHN Cabang Tolentino claimed a spot in the men’s 110-meter hurdles after clocking 13.70 seconds in yesterday’s morning heats of the Asian Athletics Championships in Bangkok, Thailand.

The 22-year-old Fil-Spaniard was battling for a medal at press time and a chance to replicate, if not eclipse, the national record of 13.65 he himself set in last month’s Campeonato de Esukadi in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain.

Cinton Bautista, in contrast, timed in 13.99 and did not make the cut.

Tokyo Olympian sprinter Kristina Knott was likewise competing at press time hoping to perform in the century dash.

Mr. Tolentino’s effort was the lone bright spot to what had been a grim campaign after Gennah Malapit (javelin), Sonny Wagdos (10,000m), Maureen Schrijvers (400m) and Frederick Ramirez (400m) all got buried under the avalanche of the strong foreign charge.

Hurdler Eric Cray and long jumper Janry Ubas, both seeking Paris Olympics qualification, will have a chance to deliver some goods new for the Filipinos as they plunge into action today.

And, of course, there is always World No. 3 pole-vaulter EJ Obiena to save the day and deliver an expected gold medal when he sees action Sunday. — Joey Villar

Exit on his own terms

Lets face it. Anything LeBron James says or does makes headlines. That’s how influential — and notorious — he has become. Certainly, it’s why his pronouncement right after the Lakers lost in the West Finals last May generated reactions from fans and critics alike. It’s not so much that he said he was contemplating retirement. It’s that he said it — he who just claimed the all-time record in scoring, he who finished the season with norms of 28.9, 8.3, and 6.8 in close to 36 minutes of action, he who openly talked about the opportunity of sharing the court with Bronny, his eldest son.

Few believed James would hang his jersey after a transcendent 20th year in the National Basketball Association, of course, and yet his musings on the matter drew significant ink. Little wonder, then, that his confirmation of conventional wisdom’s take on the continuation of his career on the court would likewise create considerable buzz. As he accepted the ESPY award for Best Record-Breaking Performance yesterday, he disclosed what just about everybody else knew to be true. “The day I can’t give everything on the floor is the day I’ll be done. Lucky for you guys, that day is not today.”

Forget about the apparent hubris in James’ declaration. Instead, focus on his body of work and commitment to justify it. He has pledged to leave everything in the tank every single time he treks to the court, and argues that the moment he can no longer do so is the moment he steps away. Considering his work ethic and dedication to his craft (which evident league cornerstone Zion Williamson has not coincidentally cited as the model), the day will not be coming for a while. And it bears noting that the numbers he will produce aren’t his gauge; “I don’t care how many more points I score, or what I can or cannot do on the floor. The real question for me is: Can I play without cheating this game?”

Because the answer to the question will invariably be yes, James is all but contending that he will exit stage left on his own terms. Crucially, he’s signed to a contract that will pay him a whopping $99.03 million over the next two years. It’s as clear an indication as any that he’ll be around for the foreseeable future, and especially in light of the outstanding offseason roster moves the Lakers have made. The purple and gold have given him legitimate cause to cast moist eyes on the hardware. And, as he has repeatedly pointed out, he’s after titles at this stage in his life.

Admittedly, James is on the downside. He began his 2022-23 campaign with flourish, but his body started breaking down as he accumulated more miles on his odometer. And though he had a respectable showing in the Lakers’ spirited run to the conference finals, he was clearly running on fumes by the end. So, yes, all eyes will be on whether he can manage his fall from grace with aplomb. The good news is that he maintains a strict yearlong workout regimen that protects him against a precipitous drop. That said, Father Time is undefeated. He’ll be done one of these days, but, as he proclaimed, “that day is not today.”

 

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and human resources management, corporate communications, and business development.

Twitter owes ex-employees $500M in severance — lawsuit

PIKISUPERSTAR-FREEPIK

TWITTER, INC. on Wednesday was hit with a lawsuit accusing it of refusing to pay at least $500 million in promised severance to thousands of employees who were laid off after Elon Musk acquired the company.

Courtney McMillian, who oversaw Twitter’s employee benefits programs as its “head of total rewards” before she was laid off in January, filed the proposed class action in San Francisco federal court.

Ms. McMillian claims that under a severance plan created by Twitter in 2019, most workers were promised two months of their base pay plus one week of pay for each full year of service if they were laid off.

Senior employees such as Ms. McMillian were owed six months of base pay, according to the lawsuit.

But Twitter only gave laid-off workers at most one month of severance pay, and many of them did not receive anything, Ms. McMillian claims.

Twitter laid off more than half of its workforce as a cost-cutting measure after Mr. Musk acquired the company in October.

Twitter no longer has a media relations department. The company responded to a request for comment with a poop emoji.

The lawsuit accuses Twitter and Mr. Musk of violating a federal law regulating employee benefit plans.

Twitter has already been sued for allegedly failing to pay severance, but those cases involve breach of contract claims and not the benefits law. The company has said it has paid ex-employees in full.

A pending lawsuit filed last month accuses Twitter of also failing to pay millions of dollars in bonuses it owes to remaining employees. Twitter has said the claims lack merit.

The company is also facing a series of other lawsuits stemming from the layoffs that began last year, including claims that it targeted women and workers with disabilities.

Twitter has denied wrongdoing in the cases in which it has filed responses. — Reuters

G20 finance chiefs set to discuss reforms to development banks, crypto, debt

NEW DELHI — Finance ministers and central bank governors of the Group of 20 (G20) member nations are set to meet and discuss reforms to multilateral development banks, a framework for crypto assets and debt treatment of some countries, an Indian government official said Wednesday.

India, which holds this year’s G20 presidency, will host global finance chiefs and deputies in the western state of Gujarat between July 14-18.

The first volume of a report on strengthening multilateral development banks by an expert group set up under the G20 and a “guidance note” to develop a globally coordinated framework for regulation and supervision of crypto asset will be discussed, India’s economic affairs secretary Ajay Seth said in a video address.

The bloc will also discuss debt treatment of countries under the so-called Common Framework — a G20 initiative launched in 2020 to help poor countries delay debt repayments, Mr. Seth added. — Reuters

US judge finalizes Allianz’s $6-billion criminal settlement

A UNITED STATES judge on Wednesday approved Allianz’s $6-billion settlement over the 2020 collapse of a group of investment funds, ending a scandal that took down one of the German company’s US subsidiaries.

Allianz settled with US authorities in May 2022 over allegations that its US unit defrauded investors in the now-defunct Structured Alpha Funds.

The subsidiary, US Allianz Global Investors (AGI), pleaded guilty to criminal securities fraud and agreed to pay the fines and restitution to investors.

US District Court Judge Colleen McMahon in Manhattan imposed what she called the “astronomical” financial sentence on Wednesday.

“This is a sad and sorry state of affairs,” she said of the allegations.

Allianz paid around $5 billion to investors, and more than $840 million to US government authorities to settle the allegations, the company said at the time.

The penalties in the case were initially announced as totaling $6 billion, but US prosecutors agreed to accept partial payment of a forfeiture order, they said in court papers.

Once with more than $11 billion of assets under management, the Structured Alpha funds lost more than $7 billion as COVID-19 roiled markets in February and March 2020.

Prosecutors said AGI misled pension funds by understating the Structured Alpha funds’ risks, and by having “significant gaps” in its oversight.

The sentencing had been postponed since last year to give Allianz’s Pacific Investment Management Co (PIMCO) time to negotiate its ability to keep handling $170 billion in US retirement funds despite AGI’s conviction.

Companies that break criminal laws or commit fraud are generally banned from activities such as conducting private offerings or managing pension plans under US law. The rule also applies to the company’s affiliates.

The US Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration granted PIMCO a five-year exemption from a 10-year ban on July 5. The asset manager can seek to extend the exemption.

AGI, which was subject to a 10 year ban, is expected to wind down its business, its attorney said in court.

In the wake of the criminal case, Allianz moved about $120 billion of investor assets to Voya Financial (VOYA.N) in exchange for a 24% stake in Voya’s asset management business. — Reuters

China-Russia June trade value at highest since Ukraine war

WIKIMEDIA/MIL.RU

BEIJING — China’s two-way trade with Russia rose in June to its highest level since the Ukraine war started, Chinese customs data showed on Thursday, at a time that both of the neighbors have described their relations as at a new high.

Bilateral trade value surged to $20.83 billion in June, the highest since February 2022, according to the data by the General Administration of Customs, despite slowing global demand and rising geopolitical risks.

China’s imports from Russia rose 15.7% to $11.28 billion, faster than a 10% increase in May. China has been buying discounted Russian oil, coal and some metals.

Outbound shipments to Russia soared 90.9% last month to a total of $9.55 billion, slower than a 114% growth registered in May.

The Chinese customs agency did not release a breakdown of the data on Thursday.

According to analytical agency Autostat, six of the top 10 brands by market share in Russia’s auto industry are Chinese, such as Haval, Chery and Geely, which have filled a vacuum left by departing Western firms.

China’s President Xi Jinping on Monday pledged to continue working with Russia to develop a comprehensive strategic partnership of cooperation.

The Kremlin said on Wednesday that a visit by President Vladimir Putin to China was on the agenda, adding that it was a good time to maintain the good relations between their countries. — Reuters

India readies moon mission aimed to stake claim as a space power

STOCK PHOTO | Image by Ponciano from Pixabay

BENGALURU – India‘s space agency is readying to launch a rocket as soon as Friday that will attempt to land a rover on the moon and mark the country’s arrival as a power in space exploration and the new frontier of space commerce.

Only the United States, the former Soviet Union and China have made successful lunar landings. An attempt by a Japanese start-up earlier this year ended with the lander crashing.

Built on a budget of just under $75 million, the Chandrayaan-3 is set to blast off from India‘s main spaceport in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh at 2:35 p.m. local time (0905 GMT).

If everything goes to plan, a 43.5 meter (143 ft) LVM3 launch rocket will blast the spacecraft into an elliptical Earth orbit before it loops toward the moon for a scheduled landing around Aug. 23.

The launch by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) is the country’s first major mission since Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government announced policies to spur investment in private space launches and related satellite-based businesses.

India wants its space companies to increase their share of the global launch market by fivefold within the next decade, officials have said, up from 2% by revenue in 2020.

Chandrayaan, which means “moon vehicle” in Sanskrit, includes a 2m tall lander designed to deploy a rover near the lunar south pole, where it is expected to remain functional for two weeks running a series of experiments.

But analysts say the launch also has a secondary mission: signaling India is open for business in the accelerating private sector space race.

“A successful mission will add to India‘s global stature and bring indirect benefits on the commercial aspect of the industry,” said Ajey Lele, a consultant at New Delhi’s Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses.

ISRO’s Chandrayaan-2 mission in 2020 successfully deployed an orbiter but its lander and rover were destroyed in a crash near where the Chandrayan-3 will attempt a touchdown.

Since 2020, when India opened to private launches, the number of space startups has more than doubled. Late last year, Skyroot Aerospace, whose investors include Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC, launched India‘s first privately built rocket.

On a visit to the United States last month, Mr. Modi and US President Joe Biden pledged to deepen collaboration in space.

Voyager Space, a Denver-based company with a NASA contract to develop the planned Starlab space station, said this week it had signed a memorandum of understanding with ISRO to use Indian rockets and would look for opportunities to collaborate with Indian space start-ups.

“India sees space as a strategic asset, and it aims to become one of the leading players in outer space,” said Carla Filotico, managing director at consultancy SpaceTec Partners.

“This could be India‘s opportunity to be one of the pioneers in this industry.” – Reuters

FTC to appeal judge’s decision to let Microsoft buy Activision

REDMOND, WASHINGTON - JULY 17: A building on the Microsoft Headquarters campus is pictured July 17, 2014 in Redmond, Washington. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella announced, July 17, that Microsoft will cut 18,000 jobs, the largest layoff in the company's history. (Stephen Brashear/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON – The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said on Wednesday it was appealing a federal judge’s ruling that Microsoft could go forward with its $69 billion purchase of “Call of Duty” maker Activision Blizzard.

Microsoft‘s victory in court on Tuesday, and a subsequent climbdown by Britain’s competition authority, brought the tech giant two steps closer to finalizing its tie-up with Activision, Microsoft‘s biggest deal ever.

Still, any outstanding regulatory hurdle makes it more likely that the agreement between Microsoft and Activision will expire on July 18 without the deal having been completed. After July 18, either company will be free to walk away from the deal unless they negotiate an extension.

The FTC‘s court filing about the appeal gave no details, which will go before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on the West Coast.

Microsoft said it would fight the appeal.

“We’re disappointed that the FTC is continuing to pursue what has become a demonstrably weak case, and we will oppose further efforts to delay the ability to move forward,” Microsoft President Brad Smith said in an emailed statement.

The FTC declined to comment further on the notice of appeal.

While the companies succeeded on Tuesday in shooting down an injunction in court against completing their deal, the judge left in place a stay preventing them from doing so until Friday, to give time to the FTC to appeal.

The FTC may request a stay from the appeals court stopping the deal from closing.

In her opinion, US District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley in San Francisco rejected the Biden administration’s argument the deal would hurt consumers by giving Xbox game console-maker Microsoft exclusive access to games including the best-selling “Call of Duty.”

Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which had opposed the transaction, said on Wednesday a restructured deal between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard could satisfy its concerns, subject to a new investigation.

 

‘MAY’ OR ‘WILL’?

US legal experts disagreed over whether the FTC had good grounds for an appeal, with some saying that appeals courts tend to defer to judges on matters of fact, while others said Judge Corley may have erred in stating the standard for stopping a deal.

In her 53-page order, Corley said it was not enough for the FTC to argue “a merger might lessen competition – the FTC must show the merger will probably substantially lessen competition.”

Legal scholars questioned that standard, saying the U.S. antitrust law required the FTC to prove the proposed deal “may” harm competition, not that it “will.”

To address the FTC‘s concerns, Microsoft agreed to license “Call of Duty” to rivals, including a 10-year contract with Japan’s Nintendo Co., contingent on the merger closing.

When US antitrust agencies lose merger challenges in court, appeals are rare.

That said, the FTC appealed a ruling more than 10 years ago when it lost its fight against Whole Foods’ purchase of Wild Oats. The agency settled with the companies before the appeals court made a decision. – Reuters

Excessive heat is baking US Southwest and expected to get worse

STOCK PHOTO | Image by David Mark from Pixabay

PHOENIX – A prolonged heat wave blanketed a swath of the US stretching from California to South Florida on Wednesday, with forecasters expecting temperatures that could shatter records in parts of the Southwest in the coming days.

The National Weather Service issued excessive heat advisories, watches and warnings for areas where about 100 million Americans live. The sweltering conditions are expected to worsen over the weekend and continue into next week.

While stifling temperatures gripped many parts of the country, Vermont and other Northeastern states barely had time to recover from historic flooding in recent days when the National Weather Service forecast more heavy rainfall across parts of New England, where rivers and streams are already running high.

Floodwaters turned the Vermont state capital of Montpelier into a swirling, brown waterway, damaged roads and may have compromised the city’s water supply. Officials told the city’s 8,000 residents to boil their water before using it until further notice.

Extreme weather also threatened the Chicago area, where at least eight tornadoes touched down in four counties in northeastern Illinois. The twisters and thunderstorms forced O’Hare and Midway airports to temporarily halt all air traffic, as tornado sirens echoed through the third biggest US city.

The growing frequency and intensity of severe weather across the US is symptomatic of global, human-driven climate change, experts in the field say.

The Southwest was bracing for potentially deadly heat with much of the area under an excessive heat warning.

Phoenix posted its 13th straight day with a temperature of at least 110 Fahrenheit (43 Celsius), with forecasts predicting the city next week will break its record of 18 straight days over 110, set in June 1974.

Moreover, the overnight lows are holding above 90F (32C), offering little relief.

“The heat is going to be expanding across California, Nevada, Arizona and all the way into West Texas into this weekend and the core of the strongest heat seems to be setting up for Friday through Monday. So we’ll be looking at records,” said Tom Frieders, Warning Coordination Meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Phoenix.

At the family-owned Six Points Hardware store in Phoenix, fans and air conditioner units have been flying off the shelves, said store manager Drew Materniak.

The heat means “business is good,” he said, noting the biggest seller has been large cooling fans, sold mostly to businesses like auto shops that cannot cool the air.

“Just stay inside man, just stay inside,” was Mr. Materniak’s advice for dealing with the heat. Las Vegas peaked at 108F (42C) on Wednesday and was forecast to match its all-time high mark of 117F (47C) on Sunday, the weather service said.

A ridge of stagnant air parked in the atmosphere was causing the excessive temperatures, said Ashton Robinson Cook, a forecaster with the weather service’s Weather Prediction Center. The mass blocks cooler air and storm systems from rolling through the area, so it is “just full sun and heat,” he said.

In Texas, where temperatures reached the upper 90s and topped 100F (37C) on Wednesday, the heat index will make it feel like 114F (46C) in some places through the weekend. Warm ocean water is causing the moist, humid air over much of the state that drives the heat index higher, Mr. Cook said.

In a cooling center in the West Texas city of Lubbock, where the temperature rose to 96F (36C) by midday, Courtney Martin, 41 and homeless for the past two weeks, sat quietly inside a public library doing needlepoint, keeping cool and staying hydrated with free bottles of water.

“I’m in here to beat the heat,” said Ms. Martin, who recently moved to Lubbock from Michigan and is not accustomed to the high temperatures. “I don’t know what I’d do without the libraries as cooling centers.” – Reuters

Chinese hackers breached State, Commerce Depts, Microsoft and US say

WASHINGTON/LONDON – Chinese state-linked hackers since May have secretly accessed email accounts at around 25 organizations, including at least two US government agencies, Microsoft and US officials said on Wednesday.

The United States detected a breach of federal government accounts “fairly rapidly” and managed to prevent further breaches, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said in an interview with ABC’s “Good Morning America” program.

The US State and Commerce Departments said in statements that they were among the affected agencies.

The email accounts of Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and Department of State officials were also hacked, The Washington Post reported, citing US officials familiar with the matter.

Raimondo is the only known Cabinet-level official to have their account breached in the incident.

A senior U.S. government official told reporters it would be unfair to compare it to the SolarWinds compromise, a sweeping set of digital break-ins that were disclosed in late 2020 and blamed on Russian cyberspies.

“This intrusion should not be compared to SolarWinds,” the official said, calling the recently discovered campaign “much narrower.”

The US official said he could not comment on Microsoft‘s decision to attribute the hack to China.

Microsoft said in a statement that the hacking group – which it dubbed Storm-0558 – forged digital authentication tokens to access webmail accounts running on the firm’s Outlook service. The activity began in May, Microsoft said.

“As with any observed nation-state actor activity, Microsoft has contacted all targeted or compromised organizations directly via their tenant admins and provided them with important information to help them investigate and respond,” the company added.

Microsoft did not say which organizations or governments had been affected, but added that the hacking group involved primarily targets entities in Western Europe.

China’s embassy in London called the accusation “disinformation” and called the US government “the world’s biggest hacking empire and global cyber thief.” China routinely denies involvement in hacking operations regardless of the available evidence or context.

White House National Security Council spokesman Adam Hodge said an intrusion in Microsoft‘s cloud security “affected unclassified systems,” without elaborating.

“Officials immediately contacted Microsoft to find the source and vulnerability in their cloud service,” Hodge added.

The State Department “detected anomalous activity” and “took immediate steps to secure our systems,” a department spokesperson said in a statement. The Commerce Department said it took “immediate action” after Microsoft notified it of a compromise.

Private sector cybersecurity experts have said newly discovered hacking activity shows how Chinese groups are improving their cyber capabilities.

“Chinese cyber espionage has come a long way from the smash-and-grab tactics many of us are familiar with,” said John Hultquist, chief analyst for US cybersecurity firm Mandiant. – Reuters

1...4,5374,5384,539...14,174Page 4,538 of 14,174
© 2024 BusinessWorld Publishing.
All rights reserved.
Read our privacy guidelines
Facebook Instagram Linkedin X Youtube