Let’s see what happened this week: 1. Cybercriminals use Kobe Bryant wallpaper to cyptojack victims According to researchers at Microsoft’s Security Intelligence division, cybercriminals embedded a coin mining script in a digital wallpaper featuring the recently deceased basketball star Kobe Bryant. — Microsoft Security Intelligence (@MsftSecIntel) January 30, 2020 Documented in a series of tweets last week, Microsoft says its Defender SmartScreen blocks the script after identifying it as a Trojan virus....

Musk lost $15 billion from his net worth in a single day after Tesla shares tumbled 8.6% on Monday. The sharp decline allowed fellow space-botherer Jeff Bezos to reclaim the crown of world’s richest person, with a ludicrous net worth of $186 billion. [Read: How do you build a pet-friendly gadget? We asked experts and animal owners] Bloomberg attributed some of the losses to Musk’s Twitter activity. The SpaceX founder tweeted on Saturday that the prices of Bitcoin and Ether “do seem high,” two weeks after Tesla announced it had snapped up $1....

The Perseverance rover had tried to collect the sample as part of its search for signs of ancient life on the red planet. Perseverance used its seven-foot-long robotic arm to bore into the Martian surface and grab the rock. Data confirmed the drill had reached the proper depth. Telemetry and photos confirmed the sample tube had been sealed and placed in storage. There was only one problem: the container was empty....

NASA Chief Jim Bridenstine initiated a safety and culture review of SpaceX the moment he found out that Elon Musk, a contractor who holds a top secret security clearance, had been filmed consuming drugs. Per a report from The Washington Post last year: Cannabis may be legal for adult recreational use in California, where Musk was during the interview, but it’s illegal at the federal level. In fact, the US government classifies cannabis as a Schedule I drug – just like heroin and crystal meth....

That’s what tech entrepreneur Elon Musk suggested in a recent presentation of the Neuralink device, an innovative brain-machine interface implanted in a pig called Gertrude. But how feasible is his vision? When I raised some brief reservations about the science, Musk dismissed them in a tweet saying: “It is unfortunately common for many in academia to overweight the value of ideas and underweight bringing them to fruition. The idea of going to the moon is trivial, but going to the moon is hard....

As we took him through a battery of tests and questionnaires, we were barely able to keep him in his seat as he kept proclaiming his willingness to travel to Syria to kill himself. “I would go tomorrow, I would do it tomorrow,” he said. When we probed for the sincerity of his claim, he responded, “only if we go together. You pay for the tickets”, with a wink and a smile....

Researchers from Trend Micro have identified a malware which uses numerous web server exploits and brute-force attacks. The malware downloads and installs XMRig, a Monero cryptocurrency miner, according to the researchers’ findings, in an article spotted by ZDNet. BlackSquid was most active in the last week of May, with most of its attacks hitting Thailand and the US, according to the researchers. Trend Micro is naming the malware family “BlackSquid” after the registries it creates and its main file names....

They claimed that the brain’s neuronal system forms an intricate network and that the consciousness this produces should obey the rules of quantum mechanics – the theory that determines how tiny particles like electrons move around. This, they argue, could explain the mysterious complexity of human consciousness. Penrose and Hameroff were met with incredulity. Quantum mechanical laws are usually only found to apply at very low temperatures. Quantum computers, for example, currently operate at around -272°C....

As Motherboard reports, Question 1 in Massachusetts passed with 75% of the votes in favor of the bill. In short, Question 1 was an addition to ballot cards for Massachusetts-based voters and asked whether they wanted carmakers to be required by law to give third-party repair firms access to vehicle telematics data. As a result of the ballot passing, carmakers that sell vehicles with data-gathering telematics systems in Massachusetts must make this data accessible to non-brand repair shops through a standardized open data platform....

Speaking during a state broadcast last night, President Nicolas Maduro said protectorates and states would receive one million Petros — Venezuela’s home-brewed cryptocurrency — twice a month, from November onwards. “This means, my compatriots, that we are assigning between 1,354,000 euros and 3,249,600 euros to governors and protectorates,” Maduro added. The President also spoke about how Venezuela’s scientific community would be able to receive payment in Petro. Maduro’s announcement can be seen as his latest attempt to encourage economic development within the country, which has suffered from hyperinflation, escalating starvation, disease, crime, and mortality rates — resulting in massive emigration....

If you want something even swankier and don’t mind waiting longer, you can pre-order the Pokemon-themed Zacian and Zamazenta Edition. That model will be released on November 8. As a recap, the Switch Lite’s main benefit is really its smaller size and lower price point. The original Switch has a 6.2-inch screen, while the Switch Lite has a 5.5-inch panel in an overall more compact frame. It might just fit in large pants or jacket pockets....

The report, published by Finnish cybersecurity firm F-Secure, detailed the increasing sophistication of these financially-motivated cyber attacks. With financial institutions becoming a lucrative target because of their socio-economic importance, the attackers are exploiting the threat landscape to commit identify fraud, engage in insider trading, and inflict reputational damage that can run into millions of dollars. “While North Korea is a unique case of a nation-state conducting financially-motivated attacks — many of which have been against the banking sector — the techniques used by the country’s hacking units have also been adopted by organized crime groups, adding to their repertoire of ways in which to steal from banks,” the report cautioned....

“This is a very serious incident, affecting our most important democratic institution,” said Norway Foreign Affairs Minister Ine Eriksen Søreide. “Based on the information the government has, it is our view that Russia is responsible for these activities.” The Russian Embassy in Washington, DC hasn’t yet addressed the allegations, but the Embassy in Oslo has downplayed the claims as “unacceptable” and “destructive for bilateral relations,” CyberScoop notes. Although Norway’s allegations didn’t come with any technical evidence, the country is part of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, a security bloc which Vladimir Putin has previously described as a threat to Russia....

JD Power says that 82% of EV early adopters “definitely will” consider buying another electric vehicle. However, it seems drivers aren’t totally loyal to the brand of their current EV, and overall satisfaction matters when it comes to their next purchase decision. [Read: How Netflix shapes mainstream culture, explained by data] It seems that drivers are making purchase decisions mostly on range, and availability of chargers. Factors like driving enjoyment, vehicle quality, and cost savings fall lower on their list of priorities....

This new charger uses a type-C to type-C cable to deliver 6.5A at 20V. Which means it can fully charge the phone with 4,000 mAh battery in just 20 minutes. If you want a quick boost, this charger can juice up 41% of the charge in just 5 minutes. In terms of charging power, Oppo’s new tech is probably the fastest for phones at the moment. Earlier this week, Vivo announced its 120W tech and Xiaomi is also expected to announce 120W charging....

The world is moving away from paper receipts. And while that’s good news, the bad news is that that transition isn’t happening fast enough. We already know 90 percent of those inconvenient printed receipts don’t usually find their way into someone’s records — they actually just get sorted into the circular file. Of course, that’s more than just a waste of time and effort. Paper receipts make up 1.5 billion pounds of environmental waste every year....

Welcome to the latest edition of Pardon The Intrusion, TNW’s bi-weekly newsletter in which we explore the wild world of security. GPS and fitness-tracking company Garmin became the latest in a long list of firms that have become victim to a ransomware attack. The incident left some of its systems encrypted, interrupting many of its online services, including website functions, customer support, customer-facing applications, and company communications for more than three days....

Welcome to the latest edition of Pardon The Intrusion, TNW’s bi-weekly newsletter in which we explore the wild world of security. Ransomware is spreading like wildfire in the US. At least 1,040 schools have been victimized in 2019 alone. That is when baddies aren’t busy targeting city governments, insurance firms, data centers, technology and healthcare companies. Last week, New Orleans became the latest victim, with the city declaring a state of emergency after its network was breached....

At the moment, Mars and the Earth are on opposite sides of the Sun, and the two planets cannot communicate with each other. After working nonstop for the past 216 Martian days, the science teams are taking the first real break since the mission started. We are two members of the Perseverance team, and with the rover hunkered down for the 20 days of conjunction, it is the perfect time to step back and reflect on the mission thus far....

We’re with Frank. The Rockers and the Atlantic League are an independent baseball league not directly affiliated with Major Leage Baseball, but the new AI systems in use are part of a partnership between the two. As part of a three-year deal, the Atlantic League’s players and coaches are playing the role of guinea pigs for MLB in order to see if automated systems are right for prime time sports....