Author: NC

Breitbart – by William Bigelow

One of the largest data breaches in history was revealed Wednesday, as health insurance giant Anthem Inc. acknowledged that its computer system had been violated starting on December 10. The company noticed the breach on January 27 and verified it two days later.

The hack puts at least 37 million people in California at risk, as it includes access to the customers’ names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, member ID numbers, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses and employment information, according to the Los Angeles Times. Medical information and credit card numbers appear to have been protected from the attack.   Continue reading “Anthem Insurance Hacked: ‘Tens of Millions’ of Victims”

Breitbart – by ILDEFONSO ORTIZ

MCALLEN, Texas — Cartel gunmen kidnapped and beat the director of a local Mexican newspaper warning him to stop reporting on the ongoing violence. This is the latest attempt by the Gulf Cartel to silence media about the escalating violence in the area immediately south of Texas’ border with Mexico.

A group of gunmen stormed the editorial offices of El Mañana newspaper in Matamoros. The gunmen beat and kidnapped the paper’s director, Enrique Juarez, the Mexican publication reported.   Continue reading “Mexican Cartel Kidnaps and Beats Newspaper Director near Texas Border”

Computerworld – by Patrick Thibodeau

Information technology workers at Southern California Edison (SCE) are being laid off and replaced by workers from India. Some employees are training their H-1B visa holding replacements, and many have already lost their jobs.

The employees are upset and say they can’t understand how H-1B guest workers can be used to replace them.

The IT organization’s “transition effort” is expected to result in about 400 layoffs, with “another 100 or so employees leaving voluntarily,” SCE said in a statement. The “transition,” which began in August, will be completed by the end of March, the company said.   Continue reading “Southern California Edison IT workers ‘beyond furious’ over H-1B replacements”

Reuters

China will ban from March 1 internet accounts that impersonate people or organizations, and enforce the requirement that people use real names when registering accounts online, its internet watchdog said on Wednesday.

China has repeatedly made attempts to require internet users to register for online accounts using their real names, although with mixed success.   Continue reading “China to ban online impersonation accounts, enforce real-name registration”

Breitbart – by ILDEFONSO ORTIZ

MCALLEN, Texas – For three days warring factions of the Gulf Cartel have turned a number of cities just south of the Texas border into a warzone that has left at least 14 gunmen dead with the true number of casualties remaining unknown.

The fighting comes after what seemed to have been a short period of peace. Members of the Gulf Cartel have once again taken up arms against each other as they fight for control of the criminal organization. Most of the battles are taking place within miles of the Texas border.   Continue reading “CONFIRMED: 14 Dead in Cartel War Raging at Texas Border”

Breitbart – by JORDAN SCHACHTEL

European officials have reportedly relayed a message to Israeli officials about the Obama administration’s plans concerning the ongoing nuclear negotiations with Iran. The U.S. and Iran are reportedly closing in on a deal that would allow the Ayatollah’s regime to keep the vast majority of its centrifuges running, while also allowing for Iran to be in charge of stabilizing its surrounding region.

Israeli Army Radio reports that the deal is being brokered between U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. The Iranians would purportedly have to make sure that there are no flare-ups in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria. It remains unclear how Iran would rein in the three countries, all of which remain hotbeds of sectarian violence. In exchange for Iran agreeing to terms that appear to very much empower its regime, the United States will also agree to lift its economic sanctions against Iran, according to reports.   Continue reading “Report: U.S. Prepared To Rely Upon Iran For Regional Stability In Afghanistan, Iraq & Syria”

Yahoo News – by ELIAS MESERET

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — African leaders have agreed to send 7,500 troops to fight the Boko Haram insurgency in northeast Nigeria, an African Union official said Saturday.

The move came after the council urged heads of state to endorse the deployment of troops from five West African countries to fight the terror group, said the head of the African Union’s Peace and Security Council, Samil Chergui.   Continue reading “Africa agrees to send 7,500 troops to fight Boko Haram”

New Eastern Outlook – by Janet Phelan

The recent decisions by social media giants Facebook and LinkedIn to adopt user crowd-censoring strategies may be less than benevolent.

According to its recent announcement, Facebook will employ an algorithm, based ostensibly on the numbers of user-generated flags, to reduce or mitigate the distribution of stories flagged as “false.” In addition, Facebook has announced that stories flagged in this manner will contain notice that the story has been determined to contain false information.   Continue reading “Social Media Giants Adopt ”Mob Rule” Tactics”

Local Org – by Tony Cartalucci

The US is proposing a government-backed DNA database composed of over a million volunteers’ genetic material. RT would report in their article, “Got genes: Obama proposes genetic biobank of 1mn Americans’ DNA to fight disease,” that:

A new $215 million US government proposal would seek more than 1 million American volunteers for analysis of their genetic information in an initiative to fight disease, while developing targeted health care based on one’s DNA.

Continue reading “The Coming Biological Infowar: US Proposes DNA Database”

USA Today – by Kaja Whitehouse

NEW YORK — Media company AOL laid off roughly 150 employees Friday, or 3% of its staff.

The bulk of the layoffs, or close to 100, were in sales, a result of the company’s surging growth in so-called programmatic ad sales, according to a person with direct knowledge of the situation who was not authorized to speak on the record.   Continue reading “Rise of the robots at AOL lead to job cuts”

Breitbart – by Wynton Hall

Despite President Barack Obama’s promise that Obamacare plans would cost less than the average cell phone or cable bill, a new study finds that nearly half of the nation’s uninsured say Obamacare is too expensive.

The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation study, which was released on Thursday, reported that 48% of uninsured Americans say they remain uninsured because Obamacare prices are too high.   Continue reading “Nearly Half of Uninsured Say Obamacare Too Expensive”

Breitbart – by William Bigelow

Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck is taking criticism after acknowledging that the LAPD and business leaders met with Rene “Boxer” Enriquez, 52, a former shot caller for the Mexican mafia, while using public resources to aid his transportation and security. Beck said Thursday “mistakes were made” and pledged to “more thoroughly review future events before committing LAPD resources,” according to the Los Angeles Times.   Continue reading “LAPD Arranged Downtown Speaking Gig for Convicted Mexican Mafia Lord”

Breitbart – by Bob Price

Texas Governor Greg Abbott declared February 2^nd to be “Chris Kyle Day” to honor the Texan who became known the most lethal sniper in American history. Kyle was also recently immortalized in the blockbuster film “American Sniper.”

Kyle was credited with 150 sniper kills during his four tours of duty in Iraq as a Navy Seal. He was tragically shot and killed on February 2, 2013, while trying to help a fellow veteran who was allegedly suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.   Continue reading “Texas Governor Declares ‘Chris Kyle Day’”

BBC News

Want to gain entry to your office, get on a bus, or perhaps buy a sandwich? We’re all getting used to swiping a card to do all these things. But at Epicenter, a new hi-tech office block in Sweden, they are trying a different approach – a chip under the skin.

Felicio de Costa, whose company is one of the tenants, arrives at the front door and holds his hand against it to gain entry. Inside he does the same thing to get into the office space he rents, and he can also wave his hand to operate the photocopier.   Continue reading “Sweden: Office puts chips under staff’s skin”

USA Today

The economy grew more slowly than expected in the fourth quarter as government spending fell sharply and business investment pulled back.

Gross domestic product expanded at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 2.6% in the three months ended Dec. 31, slowing sharply from a robust 5% pace in the third quarter, the Commerce Department said Friday. Economists expected 3.1% growth.   Continue reading “Economy grew 2.6% in the fourth quarter”