Earlier this week, cyber security firm McAfee released new details on the global hacking campaign, dubbed Operation GhostSecret.

Researchers say the campaigns were carried out to steal important information from critical infrastructure, telecommunications, finance, health care and entertainment organisations from all over the world.

“The campaign is extremely complicated, leveraging a number of implants to steal information from infected systems and is intricately designed to evade detection and deceive forensic investigators,” McAfee wrote in a post on Tuesday.

Servers seized by authorities in Thailand/ photo: McAfee

McAfee says the same group are responsible for carrying out large scale attacks on Turkish banks last month and said that there were many similarities between the attacks and those used on Sony Pictures in 2014.

But the attacks on Turkish financial institutions, which were carried out between March 14 and 18 this year, were only a fraction of the operation, which eventually spanned 17 countries, including Thailand, the United States, Germany, Japan, China and Australia.

The tools used in the attacks were the same as those used by Hidden Cobra, which the United States say are state sponsored hackers from North Korea. As well as being named as those responsible for the huge hack on Sony Pictures, Hidden Cobra are also thought to have carried out the Wanna Cry malware attack that crippled computers and networks around the world last May.

Meanwhile on Wednesday, Thailand’s Computer Emergency Response Team (ThaiCERT) announced that it had seized the servers used in the global hacking campaign and that they had been handed over to law enforcement agencies.

According to McAfee one of the servers was located at Thammasat University in Bangkok.

“This server resides at Thammasat University in Bangkok, Thailand. The same entity hosted the control server for the Sony Pictures implants”, McAfee said in its report.

“This SSL certificate has been used in Hidden Cobra operations since the Sony Pictures attack. Analyzing this certificate reveals additional control servers using the same PolarSSL certificate.

“Further analysis of McAfee telemetry data reveals several IP addresses that are active, two within the same network block as the 2018 Destover-like implant.”

“McAfee is working with Thai government authorities to take down the control server infrastructure of Operation GhostSecret, while preserving the systems involved for further analysis by law enforcement authorities”.

“By creating and maintaining partnerships with worldwide law enforcement, McAfee demonstrates that we are stronger together”.

The special edition notebooks include  Aspire 6 – Marvel Studios’ “Avengers: Infinity War” Captain America Edition, Nitro 5 – Marvel Studios’ “Avengers:Infinity War” Thanos Edition, and Swift 3 -Marvel Studios’ “Avengers: Infinity War” Iron Man Edition. The notebooks will be available in April in select countries in the Asia Pacific region.

Acer Aspire 6 – Marvel Studios'”Avengers: Infinity War” Captain America Edition

Within a premium aluminum cover featuringwith Captain America’s iconic pentagram, the Aspire 6 – Marvel Studios’ “Avengers:Infinity War” Captain America Edition is powered by an 8th Generation Intel Core i5-8250U processor and NVIDIA GeForce MX150 graphics.

The special edition Aspire 6 comes with 4 GB of DDR4 memory (user-upgradeable to 16GB up to 20GB) and 1 TB of HDD storage, and also packs a HD camera.Speedy network connectivity is provided with 2×2 MIMO 802.11ac wireless technology and Gigabit Ethernet.

Enhanced multimedia performance is what makes this special edition Aspire 6 stand out from the pack. Its 15.6-inch Full HD (1920 x 1080) display with IPS technology[i] provides consistent colors and viewing from wide angles. Acer TrueHarmony delivers lifelike audio, while two digital microphones with Acer Purified.Voice ensure a great Cortana with Voice experience. Acer Aspire 6 – Captain America is available at Bt24,990 (VAT included)

Acer Nitro 5 – Marvel Studios'”Avengers: Infinity War” Thanos Edition

The new Nitro 5 – Marvel Studios’ “Avengers: Infinity War” Thanos Edition’s is part of Acer’s Nitro product line for casual gaming.

The notebook’s top cover features a Thanos portrait decorated by IMR (In-Mold Roller) finishing technology, which complements its bold matte black chassis outlines and hairline-brushed finish. The special edition of Nitro 5 is powered by NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 graphics with 4 GB of GDDR5 VRAM, an 7th Generation Intel Core i5-7300HQ processor and 8 GB of DDR4 memory (user-upgradable to 32 GB) .

Ideal for accelerating boot-up time and shortening in-game loading times, the special edition Nitro 5 comes equipped with a super-fast 128 GB SSD paired with a 1 TB HDD for storage. A Gigabit Ethernet port delivers fast and reliable wired connections, while 802.11ac 2×2 MIMO wireless technology provides blazing-fast wireless connectivity. A comprehensive selection of ports includes one USB 3.1 Type-C (Gen 1) port, one USB 3.0 port with power-off charging, two USB 2.0 ports, and an HDMI 2.0 port1, which can support up to 90 Hz refresh rates.

The Nitro 5 – Marvel Studios’ “Avengers: Infinity War” Thanos Editionhas a 15.6-inch Full HD (1920 x 1080) IPS[ii]display, while Dolby Audio Premium and Acer TrueHarmony technology providesincredible sound depth.

These work in tandem to provide immersive experiences for gaming or watching movies. Of course, no gaming system is complete without a thermal solution to manage heat and keep the system running optimally. The Nitro 5 features dual fans with Acer Coolboost technology, which deliver heightened fan speeds and cooling ability, and allow users to manually control the cooling process when heavy use requires an added boost. Acer Nitro 5 – Thanos Edition is avialable at Bt29,990 (VAT included)

Acer Swift 3 – Marvel Studios'”Avengers: Infinity War” Iron Man Edition

Measuring in at 17.95 mm in height and weighing 1.6 kg, the Swift 3 – MarvelStudios’ “Avengers: Infinity War” Iron Man Edition’s svelte and lightweight design features a sturdy aluminium top coverdecorated with Iron Man’s glowing Arc Reactor. It features an 8th Generation Intel Core i5-8250U processor, NVIDIA GeForce MX150 and offers up to 10 hours of battery life to help users power through a full day of work and beyond.

In addition to its battery life, Swift 3 sports acollection of other indispensable features forachieving maximum productivity, including a vivid 14-inch Full HD IPS anti-glare display, a fast 256 GB SSD, 8 GB of memory and 802.11ac 2×2 MIMO wireless technology for fast and reliable internet connectivity. It has a USB 3.1 Type-C port and an HD webcam with Super High Dynamic Range. Lastly, the backlit keyboard makes typing in dimly lit environment effortless and a spaciousPrecision Touchpad provides ample room fornavigating, scrolling and zooming. The fingerprint also provided for only an owner to run the Iron Man Limited Edition. Acer Swift3 – Iron Man Edition is avialable at Bt29,990 (VAT included)

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd announced three partnerships on Monday with leading carmakers on artificial intelligence-backed connected vehicle services, cementing its commitment to the auto sector.

Under the cooperation, owners of Daimler, Audi and Volvo cars in China will be able to remotely access information about their vehicles, such as location, engine status and fuel checks, using Alibaba’s voice assistant service.

AliGenie, the AI platform powering Alibaba’s iconic smart speaker Tmall Genie, enables voice enquiries that unlock doors and turn on air conditioning before the driver even reaches the car, said Chen Lijuan, head of Alibaba AI Labs, an in-house AI research unit.

The tie-up will also help enrich the in-car infotainment portfolio based on Alibaba’s content offerings from access to video site Youku and music streaming service Xiami.

“You can check the best route via Tmall Genie at home and send that information to your car,” Chen told a media event in Beijing, citing the example of turning on the car’s heater in winter as soon as the owner wakes up.

Ideally, the world will inch even closer to a future where people can control appliances such as refrigerators and washing machines from inside their car, she noted.

According to Alibaba, the first batch of such cars will be available in June, including selected Mercedes-Benz and Volvo models. For instance, Volvo’s three current models, XC90, S90 and XC60, will integrate the AI-powered voice command feature through soft-ware upgrades in future rollouts.

Partnerships with other automakers will follow soon, Chen said.

Through the move, the tech powerhouse is scheduled to open up its ability on the so-called AI+Car solution from September.

Chinese customers are more willing to embrace new technologies and functionalities compared with consumers elsewhere, fuelling momentum for developing smart interconnected cars, said Heinz-Willi Vassen, R&D director at Audi China.

Electrification, intelligence and interconnectedness are the big trends in the automotive industry, propelling internet companies such as Alibaba to leverage their frontier technologies to help carmakers adapt to these trends, said Neil Wang, president of consultancy Frost & Sullivan in China.

“AliGenie’s application in intelligent transportation is a clear demonstration of how it combines the deep understanding of Chinese customers, the expertise in a number of technologies, with the products and solutions tailored to real-life needs,” he said.

The system, which currently screens the faces of Japanese nationals returning home, will also be used for foreigners leaving Japan from fiscal 2019. It allows a single immigration officer to oversee multiple stations, freeing other officers to screen foreigners for entry and deal with suspicious persons.

The ministry hopes through the system to strengthen antiterrorism measures for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.

Under the system, the photograph stored on a passport’s IC chip and photos taken at immigration counters are checked by computers to confirm whether both photos are of the same person.

Travelers place their passports over an electronic reader and position their faces close to an attached camera. If a match is determined, entry or exit is approved.

Screenings take about 15 seconds, and the system can adapt to age-related changes. “There would be almost no cases of misidentification,” a senior ministry official said.

The government began using the system in October last year for reentry screenings of Japanese citizens at Haneda. Three machines handle about 20 percent of all returnees, or about 2,600 people, every day at the airport.

This fiscal year, the government plans to start installing a total of 134 more machines at Haneda, Narita, Kansai, Chubu and Fukuoka airports. From next fiscal year, the machines would also be used to screen foreigners leaving the country at the five airports.

In conventional entry and exit screenings, an immigration officer usually confirms a person’s identity through an interview-style interaction.

With facial recognition, one immigration officer could oversee the system on several machines, shortening the time required for screenings. It is estimated that by operating 137 machines, dozens of officials will be able to undertake different duties.

The government aims to create the big data set, comprised of anonymized information on more than 50 million people, to develop new medicines and improve inspection technologies using artificial intelligence (AI), among other purposes, according to sources.

At present, because respective medical institutions anonymize the data they collect, data from patients with multiple diseases are analyzed separately. However, with the envisaged database, all the medical data of a single patient would be integrated, making it possible to analyze conditions that are believed to have strong correlations, such as periodontal disease and diabetes, in an integrated manner and make use of the analyses for treatment.

The database could be useful not only for new drug development but also for investigating the side effects of medicines. Early detection of diseases could become possible by retrieving masses of endoscopic images related to a specific disease from the database and using AI to analyze the images.

The database will be created, as early as the end of this year, by an entity to be designated by the government based on the medical care big data law (see below), which will go into effect in May.

In the beginning, the database will contain information on about 3 million people and the volume of data will increase to cover 50 million people by 2023, the sources said.

The government plans to designate, as early as this autumn, an incorporated body consisting of researchers at universities and others to create the database.

The designated organization is expected to anonymize information collected from medical institutions, schools, health insurance associations and others, offering the information to pharmaceutical companies and research institutions for a fee.

According to the government, while there are overseas databases collecting information such as medical examination results, they only cover information of several million people. Japan is said to have an edge over other countries in the field because its medical institutions have abundant information thanks to the Japanese universal health insurance coverage system.

The government aims to use the database to facilitate the development of advanced technologies and create new industries in the medical field.

However, many people will oppose providing third parties with information directly related to the privacy of individuals. Therefore, the government intends to decide at a Cabinet meeting, as early as the end of this month, a basic policy for the medical care big data law to provide safety measures for the database and other issues.

In the basic policy, the government will ask medical institutions to have first-visit patients confirm whether they agree to provide their information to third parties. It also plans to require medical institutions to alert patients to the fact that they can refuse the provision of their information even after giving consent.

■ Medical care big data law

The law regarding anonymized medical data to contribute to research and development in the medical field was established for the purpose of anonymizing medical care information such as medical histories, medication histories and examination results of individuals to allow third parties to utilize the data.

The 2014 breach blamed on Russian hackers affected hundreds of millions of Yahoo accounts, with stolen ‘crown jewel’ data including usernames, email addresses, phone numbers, birthdates, encrypted passwords, and security questions, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

While Yahoo discovered the data breach quickly, it remained mum about it until more than two years later when it was being acquired by telecom giant Verizon Communications, the SEC case maintained.

“Yahoo’s failure to have controls and procedures in place to assess its cyber-disclosure obligations ended up leaving its investors totally in the dark about a massive data breach,” SEC San Francisco regional office director Jina Choi said in a release.

“Public companies should have controls and procedures in place to properly evaluate cyber incidents and disclose material information to investors.”

Although Yahoo is no longer an independent company — its financial holdings are in a separate company now called Altaba — Verizon has continued to operate the Yahoo brand, including its email service and a variety of news and entertainment websites.

Oath includes the Yahoo internet operations along with those of another former internet star, AOL.

In addition to the 2014 breach, a hack the previous year affected all three billion Yahoo user accounts, according to findings disclosed by Verizon after the acquisition.

The US Justice Department charged two Russian intelligence operatives and a pair of hackers over one of the attacks, which had apparent twin goals of espionage and financial gain.

Yahoo, which was once one of the leading internet firms, sold its main online operations to Verizon last year in a deal valued at $4.48 billion.

The purchase price was cut following revelations of the two major data breaches at Yahoo.