“One password is believed to have been all it took for a ransomware gang to destroy a 158-year-old company and put 700 people out of work. KNP — a Northamptonshire transport company — is just one of tens of thousands of UK businesses that have been hit by such attacks. Big names such as M&S, Co-op and Harrods have all been attacked in recent months. The chief executive of Co-op confirmed last week that all 6.5 million of its members had had their data stolen. In KNP’s case, it’s thought the hackers managed to gain entry to the computer system by guessing an employee’s password, after which they encrypted the company’s data and locked its internal systems. KNP director Paul Abbott says he hasn’t told the employee that their compromised password most likely led to the destruction of the company. ‘Would you want to know if it was you? he asks.” (07/21/25)
“China’s top military body has issued a new set of guidelines for political officers following a series of corruption cases. The regulations, released by the Central Military Commission (CMC), were designed to ‘strengthen political loyalty,’ according to the official newspaper PLA Daily. It stressed the importance of Communist Party officials embedded within the military ‘acting with fairness and integrity in personnel matters, and leading by example.’ … The guidelines come in the wake of an anti-corruption purge that has seen more than a dozen People’s Liberation Army generals and some defence industry executives being placed under investigation. President Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasised the importance of party loyalty to strengthen ideological control and support China’s goal of becoming a military superpower.” (07/21/25)
“Twenty-five countries including Britain, France and a host of European nations issued a joint statement on Monday that puts more pressure on Israel, saying the war in Gaza ‘must end now’ and Israel must comply with international law. The foreign ministers of countries including Australia, Canada and Japan said ‘the suffering of civilians in Gaza has reached new depths.’ They condemned ‘the drip feeding of aid and the inhumane killing of civilians, including children, seeking to meet their most basic needs of water and food.’ The statement described as ‘horrifying’ the deaths of over 800 Palestinians who were seeking aid, according to the figures released by Gaza’s Health Ministry and the U.N. human rights office. ‘The Israeli government’s aid delivery model is dangerous, fuels instability and deprives Gazans of human dignity,’ the statement said.” (07/21/25)
“China’s exports of rare-earth magnets to the United States in June surged more than seven times from the prior month, as American firms clamor to get hold of the critical elements following a preliminary Sino-U.S. trade deal. In April, Beijing placed restrictions on several critical magnets, used in advanced tech such as electric vehicles, wind turbines and MRI machines, requiring firms to receive licenses for export. The move was seen as retaliation against U.S. President Donald Trump’s steep tariffs on China. … The U.S. received about 353 metric tons of rare-earth permanent magnets in June, up 660% from the previous month, data released by China’s General Administration of Customs showed, though the exports were about half that from June last year.” (07/21/25)
“Chinese authorities have begun constructing what will be the world’s largest hydropower dam in Tibetan territory, in a project that has sparked concerns from India and Bangladesh. Chinese Premier Li Qiang presided over a ceremony marking the start of construction on the Yarlung Tsangpo river on Saturday, according to local media. The river flows through the Tibetan plateau. The project has attracted criticism for its potential impact on millions of Indians and Bangladeshis living downriver, as well as the surrounding environment and local Tibetans. Beijing says the scheme, costing an estimated 1.2tn yuan ($167bn; £125bn), will prioritise ecological protection and boost local prosperity. When completed, the project – also known as the Motuo Hydropower Station – will overtake the Three Gorges dam as the world’s largest, and could generate three times more energy.” (07/21/25)
“The French government has launched a criminal investigation into Elon Musk’s X over ‘the alleged manipulation of its algorithm’ and ‘fraudulent’ data extraction, the social media platform said. In a statement on Monday, X said that French authorities had requested access to the company’s recommendation algorithm, as well as data ‘about all user posts on the platform.’ … French police and prosecutors could not immediately be reached for comment.” (07/21/25)
“U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, a Texas Democrat who represents a slice of the Rio Grande Valley along the border with Mexico, won his last congressional election by just over 5,000 votes. That makes him a tempting target for Republicans, who are poised to redraw the state’s congressional maps this coming week and devise five new winnable seats for the GOP that would help the party avoid losing House control in the 2026 elections. Adjusting the lines of Gonzalez’s district to bring in a few thousand more Republican voters, while shifting some Democratic ones out, could flip his seat. Gonzalez said he is not worried. Those Democratic voters will have to end up in one of the Republican districts that flank Gonzalez’s current one, making those districts more competitive — possibly enough so it could flip the seats to Democrats.” (07/21/25)
“A 21-year-old undocumented migrant with an extensive criminal history is in police custody following a robbery-turned-shooting of an off-duty Border Patrol agent in New York City, officials said Sunday. Miguel Mora is in police custody at Lincoln Hospital, where he underwent surgery following the exchange of gunfire late Saturday with the unidentified Border Patrol agent in Riverside, New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch told reporters during a Sunday afternoon press conference. The suspect sustained gunshot wounds to the groin and leg. The press conference was held at Harlem Hospital, where the 42-year-old Border Patrol agent was recovering from his injuries. He was shot in the face and forearm, and is expected to survive.” (07/20/25)
“A 61-year-old man has died after he was sucked into a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) machine at a medical centre while he was wearing a heavy metal necklace. The man entered a room at Nassau Open MRI in Westbury, on New York’s Long Island, without permission as the MRI machine was running, Nassau County Police Department said. His wife told local media she had called him into the MRI room after her scan and his chain necklace caused him to be hurled towards the machine when he walked in. Officials say the incident ‘resulted in a medical episode’ and the man was later pronounced dead. MRI machines use a strong magnetic field to produce detailed images. Patients are typically asked to remove metal items and change out of their clothes before undergoing MRI scans or going near the machine.” [editor’s note: So Darwin’s waiting room lost another one – SAT] (07/21/25)
“Iran, France, Germany and the United Kingdom will hold nuclear talks in Istanbul following warnings by the three European countries that failure to resume negotiations would lead to international sanctions being reimposed on Tehran. The talks scheduled for Friday come after foreign ministers of the E3 nations, as those European countries are known, as well as the European Union’s foreign policy chief, held their first call on Thursday with Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs Abbas Araghchi since Israel and the United States attacked Iranian nuclear facilities a month ago.” (07/20/25)
