On 17 May 2016, the Council of Europe formally adopted the Network and Information Security (NIS) Directive, a Commission proposal in response to increasing concerns about cyber-attacks and privacy breaches.
On 6 July 2015, the Commission of Legislation Affaires of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress issued a draft of the People’s Republic of China Cyber Security Law (CSL) for public comment. The deadline for submitting is 5 August 2015.
Once adopted, this will be the first Chinese law that focuses exclusively on cyber security. The draft signals that the Chinese government is preparing to tighten its grip on domestic networks and data security, which is in line with the National Security Law.
In this article, I will provide some lawyers’ opinions, which I agree, discussing the impacts the draft may have in both business and social life in China.
Continue Reading Influences and Features of China’s New Cyber Security Law Draft
“The next big financial shock will arise from a succession of cyber-attacks on financial services firms.”
This is the case according to the Chairman of the International Organisation of Securities Commission as cited by the Central Bank of Ireland’s Deputy Governor, Cyril Roux, during a recent address to the Society of Actuaries.
Continue Reading Cyber Security – The Next Big Financial Shock
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, or Drones, as they are more commonly known, have traditionally been regarded as a military tool, frequently featuring in media reports on US military action as well as TV dramas such as ‘Homeland’ and ‘House of Cards’. They are however, being increasingly put to a much broader spectrum of uses.
Drones have been used by humanitarian organisations to deliver food and medical supplies to crisis-stricken areas. Following typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, drones were used by international relief agency Medair to map terrain and create a detailed system of 3D aerial images of the region to make relief efforts more efficient. Amazon’s Prime Air development project has also garnered a lot of attention for its goal to use drones to deliver goods to customers in 30 minutes or less. Drones are also now available to buy in electronics stores and are used to capture videos and photographs by amateur and professional photographers.
Researchers at McAfee have discovered a new “ransomware-as-a-service” tool on the darknet. This tool, named "Tox", allows criminals to automatically create ransomware. Once the victim’s device is infected, the ransomware begins to encrypt their hard drive, allowing the criminal to demand a ransom in exchange for the encryption key.