Big Blue shoos Db2 blues before rogue staff turn the screws in hijack ruse (translation: patch your IBM databases)

User topics

Article topics

Other stories you might like

WSL2 on Windows Server 2022 hits Windows Update

Devs who like a Linux flavor to their server code get a gift from Redmond

Richard Speed Wed 22 Jun 2022 // 18:30 UTC

Microsoft has made it official. Windows Subsystem for Linux 2 distributions are now supported on Windows Server 2022.
The technology emerged in preview form last month and represented somewhat of an about-face from the Windows giant, whose employees had previously complained that while the tech was handy for desktop users, sticking it on a server might mean it gets used for things for which it wasn't intended.
(And Windows Server absolutely had to have the bloated user interface of its desktop stablemate as well, right?)

Continue reading
IBM settles age discrimination case that sought top execs' emails

Just days after being ordered to provide messages, Big Blue opts out of public trial

Thomas Claburn in San Francisco Mon 27 Jun 2022 // 20:23 UTC

Less than a week after IBM was ordered in an age discrimination lawsuit to produce internal emails in which its former CEO and former SVP of human resources discuss reducing the number of older workers, the IT giant chose to settle the case for an undisclosed sum rather than proceed to trial next month.
The order, issued on June 9, in Schenfeld v. IBM, describes Exhibit 10, which "contains emails that discuss the effort taken by IBM to increase the number of 'millennial' employees."
Plaintiff Eugene Schenfeld, who worked as an IBM research scientist when current CEO Arvind Krishna ran IBM's research group, sued IBM for age discrimination in November, 2018. His claim is one of many that followed a March 2018 report by ProPublica and Mother Jones about a concerted effort to de-age IBM and a 2020 finding by the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) that IBM executives had directed managers to get rid of older workers to make room for younger ones.

Continue reading
Not a GNOME fan, and like the look of Windows? Try KDE Plasma or Cinnamon

New versions of both desktops drop... with one the oldest FOSS 'top around

Liam Proven in Prague Thu 16 Jun 2022 // 09:00 UTC

Right after the latest release of the KDE Frameworks comes the Plasma Desktop 5.25 plus the default desktop for the forthcoming Linux Mint 23.

Continue reading
I love the Linux desktop, but that doesn't mean I don't see its problems all too well

Fragmentation has put paid to the dream of this OS ever being bigger than Windows

Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols Wed 8 Jun 2022 // 08:30 UTC

Comment Recently, The Register's Liam Proven wrote tongue in cheek about the most annoying desktop Linux distros. He inspired me to do another take.
Proven pointed out that Distrowatch currently lists 270 – count 'em – Linux distros. Of course, no one can look at all of those. But, having covered the Linux desktop since the big interface debate was between Bash and zsh rather than GNOME vs KDE, and being the editor-in-chief of a now-departed publication called Linux Desktop, I think I've used more of them than anyone else who also has a life beyond the PC. In short, I love the Linux desktop.

Continue reading
Unpatched Exchange server, stolen RDP logins... How miscreants get BlackCat ransomware on your network

Microsoft details this ransomware-as-a-service

Jeff Burt Wed 15 Jun 2022 // 03:40 UTC

Two of the more prolific cybercriminal groups, which in the past have deployed such high-profile ransomware families as Conti, Ryuk, REvil and Hive, have started adopting the BlackCat ransomware-as-as-service (RaaS) offering.
The use of the modern Rust programming language to stabilize and port the code, the variable nature of RaaS, and growing adoption by affiliate groups all increase the chances that organizations will run into BlackCat – and have difficulty detecting it – according to researchers with the Microsoft 365 Defender Threat Intelligence Team.
In an advisory this week, Microsoft researchers noted the myriad capabilities of BlackCat, but added the outcome is always the same: the ransomware is deployed, files are stolen and encrypted, and victims told to either pay the ransom or risk seeing their sensitive data leaked.

Continue reading
Microsoft issues fix for Windows 11 Wi-Fi hotspots

Meanwhile, 'search highlights' will tell you 'what's special about each day'

Richard Speed Fri 24 Jun 2022 // 15:00 UTC

Microsoft has dropped a preview of its next batch of Windows fixes, slipping a resolution for broken Wi-Fi hotspots in among the goodies.
The release – KB5014668 for Windows 11 – addresses the Wi-Fi hotspot functionality broken in June's patch Tuesday alongside some less necessary features like "search highlights," which "present notable and interesting moments of what's special about each day."
KB5014697, which was released on June 14 for Windows 11, had a selection of issues. Some .NET Framework 3.5 apps might fail and connecting to a Windows device acting as a hotspot wouldn't always work. The only fix was to roll back the patch or disable the Wi-Fi hotspot feature.

Continue reading
IBM ordered to hand over ex-CEO emails plotting cuts in older workers

Infamous 'Dinobabies' memo comes back to haunt Big Blue again

Thomas Claburn in San Francisco Mon 13 Jun 2022 // 20:20 UTC

Updated In one of the many ongoing age discrimination lawsuits against IBM, Big Blue has been ordered to produce internal emails in which former CEO Ginny Rometty and former SVP of Human Resources Diane Gherson discuss efforts to get rid of older employees.
IBM as recently as February denied any "systemic age discrimination" ever occurred at the mainframe giant, despite the August 31, 2020 finding by the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) that "top-down messaging from IBM’s highest ranks directing managers to engage in an aggressive approach to significantly reduce the headcount of older workers to make room for Early Professional Hires."
The court's description of these emails between executives further contradicts IBM's assertions and supports claims of age discrimination raised by a 2018 report from ProPublica and Mother Jones, by other sources prior to that, and by numerous lawsuits.

Continue reading
IBM’s first cloudy mainframes scheduled to launch this week

It’s not IaaS, it's reserved for test and dev – and will feed the golden goose that is the z/OS ecosystem

Simon Sharwood, APAC Editor Wed 29 Jun 2022 // 01:45 UTC

IBM has quietly announced its first-ever cloudy mainframes will go live on June 30.
Big Blue in February disclosed its plans to provide cloud-hosted virtual machines running the z/OS that powers its mainframes. These would be first offered in a closed "experimental" beta under the IBM Wazi as-a-service brand. That announcement promised "on-demand access to z/OS, available as needed for development and test" with general availability expected "in 2H 2022."
The IT giant has now slipped out an advisory that reveals a “planned availability date” of June 30.

Continue reading
HelloXD ransomware bulked up with better encryption, nastier payload

Russian-based group doubles the extortion by exfiltrating the corporate data before encrypting it.

Jeff Burt Mon 13 Jun 2022 // 17:30 UTC

Windows and Linux systems are coming under attack by new variants of the HelloXD ransomware that includes stronger encryption, improved obfuscation and an additional payload that enables threat groups to modify compromised systems, exfiltrate files and execute commands.
The new capabilities make the ransomware, first detected in November 2021 - and the developer behind it even more dangerous - according to researchers with Palo Alto Networks' Unit 42 threat intelligence group. Unit 42 said the HelloXD ransomware family is in its initial stages but it's working to track down the author.
"While the ransomware functionality is nothing new, during our research, following the lines, we found out the ransomware is most likely developed by a threat actor named x4k," the researchers wrote in a blog post.

Continue reading
Wi-Fi hotspots and Windows on Arm broken by Microsoft's latest patches

Only way to resolve is a rollback – but update included security fixes

Richard Speed Mon 20 Jun 2022 // 15:30 UTC

Updated Microsoft's latest set of Windows patches are causing problems for users.
Windows 10 and 11 are affected, with both experiencing similar issues (although the latter seems to be suffering a little more).
KB5014697, released on June 14 for Windows 11, addresses a number of issues, but the known issues list has also been growing. Some .NET Framework 3.5 apps might fail to open (if using Windows Communication Foundation or Windows Workflow component) and the Wi-Fi hotspot features appears broken.

Continue reading