The way Microsoft provided the US government with cybersecurity upgrades is under scrutiny. ProPublica published a report that delves into the “White House Offer”: a deal in which Microsoft sent consultants to install cybersecurity upgrades for free. But those free product upgrades were only covered for up to one year. Did this deal give Microsoft an unfair advantage, and what could it take to shift the federal government’s reliance on the tech giant’s services? The White House Offer ProPublica spoke to eight former Microsoft employees that played a part in the White House Offer. With their insight, the ProPublica’s report details how this deal makes it difficult for users in the federal government to shift away from Microsoft’s products and how it helped to squeeze out competition. While the cybersecurity upgrades were initially free, government agencies need to pay come renewal time. After the installation of the products and employee training, switching to alternatives would be costly. ProPublica also reports that Microsoft salespeople recommended that federal agencies drop products from competitors to save costs. Critics raise concerns that Microsoft’s deal skirted antitrust laws and federal procurement laws. “Why didn't you allow a Deloitte or an Accenture or somebody else to say we want free services to help us do it? Why couldn't they come in and do the same thing? If a company is willing to do something for free like that, why should it be a bias to Microsoft and not someone else that's capable as well?” asks Morey Haber, chief security advisor at BeyondTrust , an identity and access security company. Related: 2024 Cyber Resilience Strategy Report: CISOs Battle Attacks, Disasters, AI ... and Dust ProPublica noted Microsoft’s defense of its deal and the way it worked with the federal government. Microsoft declined to comment when InformationWeek reached out. Josh Bartolomie, vice president of global threat services at email security company Cofense , points out that the scale of the federal government makes Microsoft a logical choice. “The reality of it is ... there are no other viable platforms that offer the extensibility, scalability, manageability other than Microsoft,” he tells InformationWeek. The Argument for Diversification Overreliance on a single security vendor has its pitfalls. “Generally speaking, you don't want to do a sole provider for any type of security services. You want to have checks and balances. You want to have risk mitigations. You want to have fail safes, backup plans,” says Bartolomie. And there are arguments being made that Microsoft created a cybersecurity monoculture within the federal government. Related: Next Steps to Secure Open Banking Beyond Regulatory Compliance Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) raised concerns and called for a multi-vendor approach. “DoD should embrace an alternate approach, expanding its use of open-source software and software from other vendors, that reduces risk-concentration to limit the blast area when our adversaries discover an exploitable security flaw in Microsoft’s, or another company’s software,” they wrote in a letter to John Sherman , former CIO of the Department of Defense. The government has experienced the fallout that follows exploited vulnerabilities. A Microsoft vulnerability played a role in the SolarWinds hack . Earlier this year it was disclosed that Midnight Blizzard, a Russian state-sponsored threat group, executed a password spray attack against Microsoft. Federal agency credentials were stolen in the attack, according to Cybersecurity Dive. “There is proof out there that the monoculture is a problem,” says Haber. Pushback Microsoft’s dominance in the government space has not gone unchallenged over the years. For example, the Department of Defense pulled out of a $10 billion cloud deal with Microsoft . The contract, the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure (JEDI), faced legal challenges from competitor AWS. Related: Beyond the Election: The Long Cybersecurity Fight vs Bad Actors Competitors could continue to challenge Microsoft’s dominance in the government, but there are still questions about the cost associated with replacing those services. “I think the government has provided pathways for other vendors to approach, but I think it would be difficult ... to displace them,” says Haber. A New Administration Could the incoming Trump administration herald changes in the way the government works with Microsoft and other technology vendors? Each time a new administration steps in, Bartolomie points out that there is a thirst for change. “Do I think that there's a potential that he [Trump] will go to Microsoft and say, ‘Give us better deals. Give us this, give us that’? That's a high possibility because other administrations have,” he says. “The government being one of the largest customers of the Microsoft ecosystem also gives them leverage.” Trump has been vocal about his “America First” policy, but how that could be applied to cybersecurity services used by the government remains to be seen. “Do you allow software being used from a cybersecurity or other perspective to be developed overseas?” asks Haber. Haber points out that outsourced development is typical for cybersecurity companies. “I'm not aware of any cybersecurity company that does exclusive US or even North America ... builds,” he says. Any sort of government mandate requiring cybersecurity services developed solely in the US would raise challenges for Microsoft and the cybersecurity industry as a whole. While the administration’s approach to cybersecurity and IT vendor relationships is not yet known, it is noteworthy that Trump’s view of tech companies could be influential. Amazon pursued legal action over the $10 billion JEDI contract, claiming that Trump’s dislike of company founder Jeff Bezos impacted its ability to secure the deal, The New York Times reports.NoneThe Washington Commanders have received both good and bad news regarding their running back situation this week. Brian Robinson, Jr. will play on Sunday against the Tennessee Titans, but Austin Ekeler has been placed on injured reserve . Ekeler, who is dealing with his second concussion of the 2024 season, will be out at least four weeks. That means the earliest he can come back will be in the Commanders' Week 18 regular-season finale in Dallas. Ekeler has appeared in 11 games this season and has racked up 701 total yards from scrimmage, 355 rushing and 346 receiving. He has additionally scored five touchdowns, all on the ground. On the positive side for Washington, Robinson's available status for Sunday following an ankle injury against Dallas last week should keep the Commanders' ground attack moving. Jeremy McNichols and Chris Rodriguez, Jr. should expect to be tasked to step up in Ekeler's absence. Head injuries are nothing to take lightly, so this is the right call to err on the side of caution with Ekeler. All hopes are for a full and quick recovery so that the veteran RB can ideally contribute in the playoffs should the Commanders qualify.
WINNIPEG — Kyle Walters doesn’t believe losing a third consecutive Grey Cup means the Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ roster should be blown up. The CFL club’s general manager told reporters at his year-end availability Tuesday that reaching a fifth straight championship game by overcoming lots of injuries was a big accomplishment. Even before Winnipeg’s recent 41-24 Grey Cup loss to the Toronto Argonauts, Walters said he was looking forward to next season. “I was excited for next year based on what I’m looking at, compared to years past, where we’ve got more young guys that have contributed that are under contract,” he said. “We’ve got more young players in the building. So, the idea of, ‘This is the end of the road. The team is in a free-for-all downward,’ I don’t think is accurate. “We have a good group of guys and we were in a one-point (Grey Cup) game with 10 minutes left ... before things went downhill.” The Blue Bombers started the season 0-4, moved to 2-6 and finished 11-7 to claim the West Division title. Star receiver Dalton Schoen, veteran linebacker Adam Bighill and backup quarterback Chris Streveler all suffered season-ending injuries and are pending free agents. Negotiating with the team’s 27 unsigned players could be impacted by moves across the league among coaches, personnel staff and players such as quarterbacks, Walters said. The Bombers have given permission for offensive coordinator Buck Pierce to speak to the B.C. Lions and Edmonton Elks about those teams’ vacant head-coaching jobs, he said. Walters also revealed the Ottawa Redblacks were given the go-ahead to talk to Richie Hall about their defensive coordinator vacancy. Hall was a Winnipeg defensive assistant this season after Jordan Younger took over from him as defensive coordinator. Walters said the Bombers received permission to speak to Lions offensive coordinator Jordan Maksymic in case Pierce leaves. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats have already been given the OK to talk to Winnipeg assistant general managers Danny McManus and Ted Goveia about the Ticats’ GM opening. “You’re hesitant to have too much conversation with people who may not be in the organization next year, so it’s just been me and (head coach) Mike (O’Shea) in this moment huddled together and talking about next year,” Walters said. He said an NFL team had asked Tuesday morning to work out one Blue Bomber, but he didn’t reveal the player’s name in case he wasn’t aware of the request yet. The Blue Bombers won the Grey Cup in 2019 and ’21, but lost 28-24 to the Montreal Alouettes last year and 24-23 to Toronto in 2022. Winnipeg re-signed placekicker Sergio Castillo last week. Walters said he’d like to have deals done with three or four main players before the end of the year. The team has some up-and-coming young players inked for next year, and injuries gave others valuable experience on both sides of the ball, Walters said. Receivers such as rookie Ontaria Wilson (1,026 yards receiving in 18 games) and Keric Wheatfall (273 yards in seven games) are signed through next season. “The experience that they got was invaluable,” Walters said. Re-signing players who missed time because of injuries can get tricky. “Organizationally, can we approach (their agents) and say, ‘Well, your guy was hurt, he should come back for less money?’” Walters said. “Generally, they don’t view it like that. They view that they’ll be back 100 per cent.” One question mark is the backup to starting quarterback Zach Collaros, who suffered a deep cut to the index finger of his throwing hand late in the third quarter of the Grey Cup. Collaros got five stitches and numbing agent applied to his finger. He returned with a bandage on it, but admitted he had a hard time gripping the ball. “We’ll have to find out who our offensive coordinator is first,” Walters said when asked who might be Collaros’s backup. Terry Wilson, who briefly replaced Collaros in the Grey Cup, and Jake Dolegala are signed for next year. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 26, 2024. Judy Owen, The Canadian Press
Things are off to a heated start between Ryan Garcia and Rukiya Anpo. Garcia and Anpo are set to face each other in an exhibition showdown at RIZIN’s Decade event on Dec. 30, and on Tuesday, the first press conference for the event took place in Los Angeles. And while Garcia press conferences often have a potential to turn wild, it was Anpo who brought an aggressive energy to the proceedings. After initial statements to open the press conference, Anpo took to the podium with a pre-written speech that the Japanese kickboxer delivered to Garcia before crumbling it up and throwing it at the former WBC interim lightweight champion. “We all know Ryan Garcia’s issues,” Anpo said. “Missing weight, alcohol, ... lack of professionalism, no sportsmanship, no respect. Yet he dares to call himself ‘King.’ On fight day I’ll show him the true code of bushido. We fight for honor and legacy. I’ll bring the real Japanese samurai spirit and show him exactly where he belongs. “F*ck you! F*ck you!” Anpo’s aggression seem to catch Garcia off guard, who admitted that he was not taking this event too seriously. “It’s waking me up,” Garcia said. “I just kind of looked to this like, it’s going to be a little exhibition, I’m going to enjoy the ride, enjoy the festivities in Japan, it’s New Year’s, but now it’s kind of waking the dragon up. It’s making me a little excited to put a whooping on this dude. I’m looking to knock hi out now. Before, I thought it was going to be a relaxing, family event. It’s not anymore.” Garcia and Anpo continued to trade words back-and-forth as the press conference continued with both men making threats to one another before ultimately facing off for the first time. And given the tenor of the presser up until then, it’s no surprise that things got a little heated during the face off, with Garcia pretending to hit Anpo, and Anpo responding with a shove of his own. Rukiya Anpo got in Ryan Garcia's face during the first #RIZIN_DECADE press conference in LA pic.twitter.com/4myxbqh2l1 A former interim WBC lightweight champion, 26-year-old Garcia is one of the most popular boxers competing in the sport today, but has had as many outside the ring troubles as successes lately. Most recently he won a majority decision victory over Devin Haney back in April that was later overturned to a No-Contest after Garcia tested positive for Ostarine. Garcia is currently serving a one-year suspension for the failure. The 29-year-old Anpo is a former K-1 champion who most recently had an impressive performance against Manny Pacquiao in a three-round exhibition boxing match back in July. You can check out the tense staredown above.
JERUSALEM — Israel approved a United States-brokered ceasefire agreement with Lebanon's Hezbollah on Tuesday, setting the stage for an end to nearly 14 months of fighting linked to the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip. In the hours leading up to the Cabinet meeting, Israel carried out its most intense wave of strikes in Beirut and its southern suburbs and issued a record number of evacuation warnings. At least 24 people were killed in strikes across the country, according to local authorities, as Israel signaled it aims to keep pummeling Hezbollah in the final hours before any ceasefire takes hold. Israel's security Cabinet approved the ceasefire agreement late Tuesday after it was presented by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his office said. U.S. President Joe Biden, speaking in Washington, called the agreement “good news” and said his administration would make a renewed push for a ceasefire in Gaza. People are also reading... An Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire would mark the first major step toward ending the regionwide unrest triggered by Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. But it does not address the devastating war in Gaza. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to bring peace to the Middle East, but neither he nor Netanyahu have proposed a postwar solution for the Palestinian territory, where Hamas is still holding dozens of hostages and the conflict is more intractable. Still, any halt to the fighting in Lebanon is expected to reduce the likelihood of war between Israel and Iran, which backs both Hezbollah and Hamas and exchanged direct fire with Israel on two occasions earlier this year. Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike on Dahiyeh, in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. Israel says it will ‘attack with might’ if Hezbollah breaks truce Netanyahu presented the ceasefire proposal to Cabinet ministers after a televised address in which he listed a series of accomplishments against Israel’s enemies across the region. He said a ceasefire with Hezbollah would further isolate Hamas in Gaza and allow Israel to focus on its main enemy, Iran, which backs both groups. “If Hezbollah breaks the agreement and tries to rearm, we will attack,” he said. “For every violation, we will attack with might.” Netanyahu's office later said Israel appreciated the U.S. efforts in securing the deal but "reserves the right to act against every threat to its security.” It was not immediately clear when the ceasefire would go into effect, and the exact terms of the deal were not released. The deal calls for a two-month initial halt in fighting and would require Hezbollah to end its armed presence in a broad swath of southern Lebanon, while Israeli troops would return to their side of the border. Thousands of additional Lebanese troops and U.N. peacekeepers would deploy in the south, and an international panel headed by the United States would monitor all sides’ compliance. But implementation remains a major question mark. Israel has demanded the right to act should Hezbollah violate its obligations. Lebanese officials have rejected writing that into the proposal. Biden said Israel reserved the right to quickly resume operations in Lebanon if Hezbollah breaks the terms of the truce, but that the deal "was designed to be a permanent cessation of hostilities.” Hezbollah has said it accepts the proposal, but a senior official with the group said Tuesday that it had not seen the agreement in its final form. “After reviewing the agreement signed by the enemy government, we will see if there is a match between what we stated and what was agreed upon by the Lebanese officials,” Mahmoud Qamati, deputy chair of Hezbollah’s political council, told the Al Jazeera news network. “We want an end to the aggression, of course, but not at the expense of the sovereignty of the state” of Lebanon, he said. “Any violation of sovereignty is refused.” In this screen grab image from video provide by the Israeli Government Press Office, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu makes a televised statement Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Jerusalem, Israel. Warplanes bombard Beirut and its southern suburbs Even as Israeli, U.S, Lebanese and international officials have expressed growing optimism over a ceasefire, Israel has continued its campaign in Lebanon, which it says aims to cripple Hezbollah’s military capabilities. An Israeli strike on Tuesday leveled a residential building in the central Beirut district of Basta — the second time in recent days warplanes have hit the crowded area near the city’s downtown. At least seven people were killed and 37 wounded, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry. Strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs killed at least one person and wounded 13, it said. Three people were killed in a separate strike in Beirut and three in a strike on a Palestinian refugee camp in southern Lebanon. Lebanese state media said another 10 people were killed in the eastern Baalbek province. Israel says it targets Hezbollah fighters and their infrastructure. Israel also struck a building in Beirut's bustling commercial district of Hamra for the first time, hitting a site that is around 400 meters (yards) from Lebanon’s Central Bank. There were no reports of casualties. The Israeli military said it struck targets in Beirut and other areas linked to Hezbollah's financial arm. The evacuation warnings covered many areas, including parts of Beirut that previously have not been targeted. The warnings, coupled with fear that Israel was ratcheting up attacks before a ceasefire, sent residents fleeing. Traffic was gridlocked, and some cars had mattresses tied to them. Dozens of people, some wearing their pajamas, gathered in a central square, huddling under blankets or standing around fires as Israeli drones buzzed loudly overhead. Hezbollah, meanwhile, kept up its rocket fire, triggering air raid sirens across northern Israel. Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee issued evacuation warnings for 20 buildings in Beirut's southern suburbs, where Hezbollah has a major presence, as well as a warning for the southern town of Naqoura where the U.N. peacekeeping mission, UNIFIL, is headquartered. UNIFIL spokesperson Andrea Tenenti told The Associated Press that peacekeepers will not evacuate. A police bomb squad officer inspects the site where a rocket fired from Lebanon landed in a backyard in Kiryat Shmona, northern Israel, Tuesday Nov. 26, 2024. Israeli forces reach Litani River in southern Lebanon The Israeli military also said its ground troops clashed with Hezbollah forces and destroyed rocket launchers in the Slouqi area on the eastern end of the Litani River, a few kilometers (miles) from the Israeli border. Under the ceasefire deal, Hezbollah would be required to move its forces north of the Litani, which in some places is about 30 kilometers (20 miles) north of the border. Hezbollah began firing into northern Israel, saying it was showing support for the Palestinians, a day after Hamas carried out its Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel, triggering the Gaza war. Israel returned fire on Hezbollah, and the two sides have been exchanging barrages ever since. Israel escalated its campaign of bombardment in mid-September and later sent troops into Lebanon, vowing to put an end to Hezbollah fire so tens of thousands of evacuated Israelis could return to their homes. More than 3,760 people have been killed by Israeli fire in Lebanon the past 13 months, many of them civilians, according to Lebanese health officials. The bombardment has driven 1.2 million people from their homes. Israel says it has killed more than 2,000 Hezbollah members. Hezbollah fire has forced some 50,000 Israelis to evacuate in the country’s north, and its rockets have reached as far south in Israel as Tel Aviv. At least 75 people have been killed, more than half of them civilians. More than 50 Israeli soldiers have died in the ground offensive in Lebanon. Chehayeb and Mroue reported from Beirut. Associated Press reporters Lujain Jo and Sally Abou AlJoud in Beirut contributed. Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox! Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.
‘We have to go for the third fight’: Serrano looks towards trilogy match with Taylor
AP Business SummaryBrief at 4:27 p.m. ESTNEW YORK — It’s almost that time of year: Spotify is gearing up to release its annual Wrapped, personalized recaps of users' listening habits and year in audio. Spotify has been giving its listeners breakdowns of their data since 2016. And each year, it’s become a bigger production — and internet sensation. Spotify said its 2023 Wrapped was the “biggest ever created,” in terms of audience reach and the kind of data it provided. So, what will 2024 have in store? Here’s a look at what to know ahead of this year’s Spotify Wrapped. What exactly is Spotify Wrapped? It’s the streaming service's annual overview of individual listening trends, as well as trends around the world. Users learn their top artists, songs, genres, albums and podcasts, all wrapped into one interactive presentation. The campaign has become a social media sensation, as people share and compare their Wrapped data with their friends and followers online. Past iterations have provided users with all kinds of breakdowns and facts, including whether they’re among an artist’s top listeners, as well as a personalized playlist of their top 100 songs of that year to save, share and listen to whenever they’re feeling nostalgic. Spotify also creates a series of playlists that reflect national and global listening trends, featuring the top streamed artists and songs. In 2023, Taylor Swift was Spotify's most streamed artist , unseating Bad Bunny who had held the title for three years in a row. Each year has something new in store. In 2019, Wrapped included a summary of users’ streaming trends for the entire decade. Last year, Spotify matched listeners to a Sound Town based on their artist affinities and how it lined up with those in other parts of the world. When is the expected release date? So far, the streaming platform has kept the highly anticipated release date of Wrapped under ... er, wraps. In past years, it’s been released after Thanksgiving, between Nov. 30 and Dec. 6. Each year, rumors tend to swell on social media around when Spotify stops collecting data in order to prepare their Wrapped results, and this year was no exception. Spotify quickly squashed those presumptions , assuring on social media that “Spotify Wrapped doesn’t stop counting on October 31st.” A representative for Spotify did not respond to a request for comment on when the company stops tracking data for Wrapped. Where can I find my Spotify Wrapped? When Wrapped is released, each user's Spotify account will prompt them to view their interactive data roundup. It can be accessed through the Spotify smartphone app, or by logging on to the Spotify website . Wrapped is available to users with and without Premium subscriptions. What else can I learn with my Spotify data? There are a handful of third-party sites that you can connect your Spotify account to that will analyze your Wrapped data. How Bad is Your Spotify is an AI bot that judges your music taste. Receiptify gives you your top songs on a sharable graphic that looks like, yes, a receipt. Instafest gives you your own personal music festival-style lineup based on your top artists. How NPRCore Are You assesses how similar your music taste is to NPR Music's. What if I don’t have Spotify? Other major streaming platforms such as Apple Music and YouTube Music have developed their own versions of Wrapped in recent years. Apple Music’s Replay not only gives its subscribers a year-end digest of their listening habits but monthly summaries as well — a feature that helps differentiate itself from the one-time Spotify recap. That's released at the end of the calendar year. YouTube Music, meanwhile, has a similar end-of-the-year release for its listeners, as well as periodic seasonal releases throughout the year. It released its annual Recap for users earlier this month.
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Spencer Knight made 20 saves, Mackie Samoskevich scored with less than a second left in the second period, and the Florida Panthers got four goals in the third to beat the Carolina Hurricanes 6-0 on Saturday and complete a two-day sweep. Aleksander Barkov, Sam Bennett, Aaron Ekblad, Evan Rodrigues and Adam Boqvist also scored for Florida, which won 6-3 at Carolina on Friday. The Panthers have won three straight — that streak following a stretch of six losses in seven games for the Stanley Cup champions. It was Knight's fourth career shutout, his first since Nov. 9, 2022 — also at home against Carolina. Spencer Martin made 23 saves on 28 shots for the Hurricanes, who have dropped four of their last six games (2-3-1). It was Martin's fourth consecutive start for Carolina. Hurricanes: This was the first time all season that the Hurricanes failed to get a point in the game immediately following a loss. Carolina was 4-0-1 after a defeat entering Saturday. Panthers: A big day for Samoskevich — his alma mater Michigan beat Ohio State in football on Saturday, that game ending just before the Florida-Carolina game started. The Panthers are 5-0-0 when he scores this season. Sam Reinhart had each of the four most recent Florida goals at 19:59, before Samoskevich got his Saturday. The Panthers scored two goals 11 seconds apart in the third to make it 5-0, and Yaniv Perets replaced Martin in the Hurricanes' net with 8:12 remaining. It was the second NHL appearance for Perets, who came on once in relief for Carolina last season. Ekblad's goal was his first in a span of 1,045 regular-season shifts since Feb. 20. Carolina starts a two-game homestand Tuesday against Seattle. Florida goes to Pittsburgh to start a two-game trip on Tuesday. AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL
