March 2024 - cypherpunks - lists.cpunks.org

Watchdog, Better Markets, Investigates the Bank that Has Lost 65 Percent of Its Market Value in Two Months and Was Downgraded to Junk by Moody’s
by Gunnar Larson 04 Mar '24

04 Mar '24

https://wallstreetonparade.com/2024/03/watchdog-better-markets-investigates… By Pam Martens and Russ Martens: March 4, 2024 ~ Frightened Wall Street TraderThe widely respected banking and Wall Street watchdog, Better Markets, has a new report out on the latest teetering bank holding company, New York Community Bancorp (ticker NYCB). The title of the well-researched report pretty much says it all: “A Frankenstein Monster Federal Regulators Created.” NYCB has lost 65 percent of its stock market value year-to-date and was downgraded to a junk credit rating by Moody’s after the stock market closed on February 6. Moody’s wrote in its downgrade that a third of the bank’s deposits lack FDIC insurance. NYCB’s rapid share price descent began on January 31 when the bank filed an 8K form with the SEC indicating a $260 million net income loss in the fourth quarter; a dividend cut from 17 cents to 5 cents; and a $552 million provision for credit losses on commercial real estate – an area of growing concern by the credit rating agencies. The facts in the Better Markets report are astonishing in terms of what passes for federal bank regulation today. The Better Markets researchers write as follows: “In late 2022 and early 2023, the federal banking regulators inexplicably approved not one, but two, mergers for NYC Bancorp in rapid succession. First, in December 2022, Flagstar was acquired by NYC Bancorp and at the same time Flagstar acquired [New York Community Bank]. Then, only about 100 days later, Flagstar was selected as the winning bidder by the FDIC to acquire the failed Signature Bank (‘Signature’). A bank acquiring and integrating any one of these transactions in isolation would be challenging under the best of circumstances, it is inexplicable that the banking regulators allowed them in tandem under extremely stressed conditions.” And this: “…over the course of just two quarters, Flagstar’s two acquisitions quadrupled its asset size, from $25 billion on September 30, 2022, to $123 billion on March 31, 2023. It also more than doubled its employee count, from about 2,800 in September 2022 to 6,800 in March 2023.” It should be noted that rapid asset growth was cited by federal banking regulators as a key factor in the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, which set off a banking panic and bank runs in the spring of last year. That panic resulted in the second, third and fourth largest bank failures in U.S. history. The Better Markets investigation points the finger at the federal regulator of national banks, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), as a key player in the making of this Frankenstein bank. (National banks are those allowed to operate across state lines.) What happened was that when this bank didn’t initially get merger approval from its primary federal regulator, it simply switched its primary regulator to the OCC and got its merger approved. Better Markets calls this “shocking and literally unbelievable,” writing as follows: “…The American people rely on the banking regulators to protect them, and the broader financial system and the facts related to this situation suggest unacceptable failures in these areas. “The apparent lack of regulatory coordination and the ability of a bank to switch regulators and receive a different decision on a merger application is shocking and literally unbelievable. However, what is worse is the apparent willingness of regulators to overlook all that and racial discriminatory conduct by merger participants on multiple occasions in approving the final merger transaction. The American people deserve better from their financial regulators, and financial stability depends on it.” The grimy fingerprints of the OCC were also at play when it approved the purchase of the failed First Republic Bank by the riskiest and largest bank in the United States – JPMorgan Chase – on May 1 of last year. On July 12 of last year, Senator Elizabeth Warren, Chair of the Senate Banking’s Subcommittee on Economic Policy, held a hearing on “Bank Mergers and the Economic Impacts of Consolidation.” Warren had this to say during the hearing: “When First Republic Bank collapsed in April, the bank was ultimately sold to the biggest bank in America, JP Morgan Chase. That sweetheart deal cost the Federal Deposit Insurance Fund $13 billion. Meanwhile, overnight, the country’s biggest bank got $200 billion bigger. And what happened to the regulators? The Acting Comptroller of the Currency, Michael Hsu, rubber stamped the deal in record time. When I asked Mr. Hsu at a hearing in May to explain how this merger was approved, he was unable to provide a clear answer. “But the overall picture gets worse. Instead of inattentive regulators who don’t use their tools to block increasing consolidation, leaders within the Biden Administration seem to be inviting more mergers. In a May 2023 statement before the House Financial Services Committee, Acting Comptroller Hsu reassured banks that the agency would be ‘open-minded’ while considering merger proposals…. “Treasury Secretary Yellen recently warned that the banking ‘turmoil’ from the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank, and First Republic might lead to more mergers and that regulators would be – quote – ‘open to’ them. Then the New York Times also reported that Secretary Yellen privately told big banks that she would, and I quote, ‘welcome more mergers.’ ” At the hearing, Warren called this lax position by regulators to be “stunningly wrongheaded” and “courting disaster.” Tens of millions of Americans are sleepwalking their way to the next banking crisis. If you agree with Wall Street On Parade that the current banking structure in the U.S. represents a threat to national security and economic stability, please contact your U.S. Senators today via the U.S. Capitol switchboard by dialing (202) 224-3121. Tell your Senators to hold immediate hearings on the Fed’s non-stop bailouts of the banking sector and demand the restoration of the Glass-Steagall Act to separate Wall Street’s trading casinos from federally-insured commercial banks.

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Ukraine strikes deal with Peter Thiel’s tech giant to clear unexploded mines
by Gunnar Larson 04 Mar '24

04 Mar '24

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2024/03/02/ukraine-deal-peter-thiels-t… Ukraine has turned to a company founded by Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel to clear thousands of square miles of mines and explosives. The deal will see Palantir supply Ukraine with its artificial intelligence (AI) tools to organise and accelerate its demining efforts. Ukraine is hoping to decontaminate 80pc of its potentially mined land within 10 years and bring it back into economic use, freeing up millions of acres of farmland. Roughly a third of the country’s landmass is thought to be hazardous owing to mines or unexploded ordnance. The World Bank has estimated efforts to remove the explosives could cost up to $38bn (£30bn), with Ukraine seeking international deals and support to accelerate the effort even as it grapples with Russian advances in the Donbas. The 12-month agreement with Palantir builds on an earlier pilot programme. Palantir’s technology can be used to create a digital map of Ukraine’s territory and resources, such as heavy machinery and drones, and prioritise its clearance efforts.

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Re: Recipe for a CISO
by Karl Semich 04 Mar '24

04 Mar '24

it used to be knowing systems meant learning to look inside obscure binaries and figuring out how to turn them to your ends like an anthropologist decoding ancient tablets (breaking into systems by hand), and doing this so well that you could defend against others doing it effectively. basically, nobody else had any idea how anything worked, it seemed they were all living in fantasy worlds based on marketing materials. it’s been a decade or two now for me, and i don’t know how it is in the present day. since the era of the dedicated hacker there are public tools maybe starting with metasploit that magnify power immensely. various actors have stimulated serious reduction in the quality of new code while other groups have secured some systems very strongly, such as blockchains. phones and routers still languish without updates while vulnerabilities sit in public databases to be used. things like this likely shift the power away from the researcher. i took one brief intro in cybersecurity and it was all AI, training models to detect and respond to anomalies. and those same powerful entities put backdoors straight in the hardware, contributing to frustration of complete review. my personal experiences lend me to think that AI has been used on the offensive for quite some time now. it seems things may have also shifted a ton toward social influence, which may even simply be more familiar to most people. On Mon, Mar 4, 2024 at 06:24 Cyber Cyber Cyber Cyber < cybercybercybercyber(a)substack.com> wrote: > eye of newt and toe of frog > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ > ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ > ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ > ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ > ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ > ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ > ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ > ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ > ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ > Forwarded this email? Subscribe here > <https://substack.com/redirect/2/eyJlIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9uaW5qYS5jeWJlcmN5YmVyY3l…> > for more > Recipe for a CISO > <https://substack.com/app-link/post?publication_id=39961&post_id=142092104&u…>eye > of newt and toe of frog > > J.M. Porup > <https://substack.com/redirect/8a26d781-dff5-47aa-83a2-acdbbd8aa0ac?j=eyJ1Ij…> > Mar 4 > > <https://substack.com/redirect/8a26d781-dff5-47aa-83a2-acdbbd8aa0ac?j=eyJ1Ij…> > > > <https://substack.com/app-link/post?publication_id=39961&post_id=142092104&u…> > > <https://substack.com/app-link/post?publication_id=39961&post_id=142092104&u…> > > <https://substack.com/app-link/post?publication_id=39961&post_id=142092104&u…> > > <https://substack.com/redirect/2/eyJlIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9vcGVuLnN1YnN0YWNrLmNvbS9…> > > READ IN APP > <https://open.substack.com/pub/cybercybercybercyber/p/recipe-for-a-ciso?utm_…> > > > <https://substack.com/redirect/86b5fba9-0a16-455d-953e-0b44c9a0a2dd?j=eyJ1Ij…>this > won’t hurt at all, promise > > What exactly is a CISO, anyway? > > I see CISO job ads asking for people’s GitHub handles, but you’re not > hiring a developer, and you're not hiring an engineering manager, you're > hiring a CISO. > > Thanks for reading Cyber Cyber Cyber Cyber! Subscribe for free to receive > new posts and support my work. > > Pledge your support > <https://substack.com/redirect/2/eyJlIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9uaW5qYS5jeWJlcmN5YmVyY3l…> > > Security engineering is not about writing code, so even if you were hiring > an Security Engineering Manager you still wouldn’t want to be measuring > candidates based on the code they write. > > So if a CISO isn’t just a weird form of security engineering manager, then > what exactly do we do all day long, anyway? > > What’s the recipe for a CISO? > One bushel of technical systems knowledge > > How do things work? You can’t secure a system if you don’t understand the > system at least as well as attackers. From my point of view, that means a > good CISO is much more likely to come out of traditional IT or even a > DevSecOps role than from a developer role. Developers are generally > laser-focused on a specific tech stack—deep and narrow—but a CISO needs to > spread themselves thin across everyone and everything in their org—shallow > but broad. > a demijohn of people, people, people > > Not just technology, but also process and people. Because the human > systems you are defending are not technical. CISOs are focused on risk > management, and the way you manage risk—since risk mitigation is almost > always part of risk management—is to change things. To change the way > people do things. In other words, change management. But people hate > change! Oh my lord do people hate change. So exercising diplomacy and > influence across an org is key to securing an org. That’s not a 133t > supercoder job. > a peck of security mindset > > No one can be successful in any security role without the security > mindset. This is the adversarial thinking that distinguishes a builder from > a breaker, and it’s the raw material I look for when interviewing > candidates. You can teach technical skills, but you can’t teach adversarial > thinking to someone who lacks the knack. It’s a raw talent that I’ve > discovered in people both technical and non-technical. A CISO unable to > think creatively about adversaries—whether the North Korean military, a > ransomware gang, or the Irish Data Protection Authority—is not going to be > effective in their role. > two liters of leadership ability > > A one-man CISO is just a phony title. Ultimately a company of any size > that needs a CISO is going to need a security team for the CISO to lead. > But that means the CISO needs to be an effective team leader who knows how > to delegate, to motivate, to discipline—to get the most out of their team > for the benefit of their employer. This includes leading on both security > engineering (managing real securiy risk) as well as security compliance > (working with Legal to meet regulatory risk appetite, acquiring security > certifications like ISO 27001 to enable the business to close deals, etc). > a barrel of business mindset > > It is a tempting but fatal rookie error in security to be an absolutist > about security. This is unhelpful and makes you a bad CISO. A CISO is not > just a technical engineering manager—a CISO is a business executive whose > job is to working closely with the CEO and Board of Directors to balance > risk and opportunity to meet business goals. A CISO is not a high priest of > security trying to achieve perfection or a Cassandra warning of doom. Risk > is part of doing business, and security risk is part of doing business. > Making sure the business understand that risk, and helping the business to > choose between accepting risk or spending money to mitigate that risk, is > the fundamental service the CISO provides. > a heaping tablespoonful of lawyer > > I am not a lawyer and I don’t play one on TV. But I need a solid grasp of > the law in order to do my job. As I explained to a disbelieving colleague—a > software engineering manager—security straddles the fence between > Engineering and Legal. Legal and regulatory risk are a major part of my job > as a CISO. When my adversaries aren’t just criminal hackers but government > regulators, I better understand the regulations that we aim to either > comply with (or, as an executive decision involving the General Counsel, to > not comply with because the risk of a regulatory fine is so low). > a pinch of accountant > > You can either accept risk or spend money to mitigate risk. That means you > need a solid beancounter mentality to be effective as a CISO. How much > money should we spend? What's the cost/benefit analysis of that spend? > (What's your Security ROI?) Are you spending money wisely, and being a good > steward of company funds? > a megaphone of hostage negotiator > > Negotiating contracts with security vendors sometimes feels like a hostage > negotiation. "Pay us this crazy money for a substandard product, or the > hostage gets it." In this case my employer is the hostage. It’s not > racketeering but it sometimes feels like it! Being able to go to the mat > with vendors and tear into their offering to get a better price is a > crucial skill for a CISO. It’s not enough to just mitigate security risk, > you should be optimizing for cost as well. > Recipe > > Throw all the ingredients into a blender. Puree on low for twenty years or > so. Pour into a suit hoodie (half suit, half hoodie) and serve with a > heaping side order of ambiguity. > > Thanks for reading Cyber Cyber Cyber Cyber! Subscribe for free to receive > new posts and support my work. > > Pledge your support > <https://substack.com/redirect/2/eyJlIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9uaW5qYS5jeWJlcmN5YmVyY3l…> > > Cyber Cyber Cyber Cyber is free today. But if you enjoyed this post, you > can tell Cyber Cyber Cyber Cyber that their writing is valuable by pledging > a future subscription. You won't be charged unless they enable payments. > > Pledge your support > <https://substack.com/redirect/2/eyJlIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9uaW5qYS5jeWJlcmN5YmVyY3l…> > > Like > <https://substack.com/app-link/post?publication_id=39961&post_id=142092104&u…> > Comment > <https://substack.com/app-link/post?publication_id=39961&post_id=142092104&u…> > Restack > <https://substack.com/redirect/2/eyJlIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9vcGVuLnN1YnN0YWNrLmNvbS9…> > > > © 2024 J.M. Porup > 548 Market Street PMB 72296, San Francisco, CA 94104 > Unsubscribe > <https://substack.com/redirect/2/eyJlIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9uaW5qYS5jeWJlcmN5YmVyY3l…> > > [image: Get the app] > <https://substack.com/redirect/d2324bc1-691d-4b73-9cfb-6af14547e6b5?j=eyJ1Ij…>[image: > Start writing] > <https://substack.com/redirect/2/eyJlIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9zdWJzdGFjay5jb20vc2lnbnV…> >

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State AGs Say SEC's Kraken Case Treads On State Authority
by Gunnar Larson 04 Mar '24

04 Mar '24

State AGs Say SEC's Kraken Case Treads On State Authority <https://www.law360.com/fintech/articles/1808754?nl_pk=d2b3e7ef-ab62-4a62-80…> By Aislinn Keely Attorneys general from eight states have told a California federal judge that the theory used by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in its enforcement case against crypto exchange Kraken could potentially preempt state laws for consumer protection. Brief attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/fintech/articles/1808754?nl_pk=d2b3e7ef-ab62-4a62-80…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/fintech/articles/1808754?nl_pk=d2b3e7ef-ab62-4a62-80…>

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McCarter & English Denied $1M Fee Bid In Celsius Ch. 11
by Gunnar Larson 04 Mar '24

04 Mar '24

McCarter & English Denied $1M Fee Bid In Celsius Ch. 11 <https://www.law360.com/fintech/articles/1808899?nl_pk=d2b3e7ef-ab62-4a62-80…> By Ben Zigterman A New York bankruptcy judge has granted requests by a number of creditor groups in the Celsius Network Chapter 11 case for fees and expenses but denied a $1 million request by a borrower group represented by McCarter & English, saying it had failed to make a substantial contribution to the case. Opinion attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/fintech/articles/1808899?nl_pk=d2b3e7ef-ab62-4a62-80…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/fintech/articles/1808899?nl_pk=d2b3e7ef-ab62-4a62-80…>

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We Don't Know If They Prejudged Meta,' Judge Says Of FTC
by Gunnar Larson 04 Mar '24

04 Mar '24

We Don't Know If They Prejudged Meta,' Judge Says Of FTC <https://www.law360.com/technology/articles/1808861?nl_pk=2bd720dd-746c-4744…> By Bryan Koenig The D.C. federal judge handling Meta's case attacking the Federal Trade Commission's constitutionality and its efforts to reopen a 2020 privacy settlement balked Friday at preliminarily stopping the agency from banning the monetization of children's data. Brief attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/technology/articles/1808861?nl_pk=2bd720dd-746c-4744…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/technology/articles/1808861?nl_pk=2bd720dd-746c-4744…>

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Gilstrap Orders Damages Retrial To Avoid $67.5M 'Train Wreck'
by Gunnar Larson 04 Mar '24

04 Mar '24

Gilstrap Orders Damages Retrial To Avoid $67.5M 'Train Wreck' <https://www.law360.com/technology/articles/1809102?nl_pk=2bd720dd-746c-4744…> By Dani Kass Chief U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap ordered a damages retrial in infringement litigation between G+ Communications and Samsung on Friday, warning there would otherwise be a "guaranteed 'train wreck'" since both parties failed to explain what they believed the $67.5 million verdict means. Opinion attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/technology/articles/1809102?nl_pk=2bd720dd-746c-4744…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/technology/articles/1809102?nl_pk=2bd720dd-746c-4744…>

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Tesla Stock For Fees? Attys Who Got Musk's Pay Cut Say Yes
by Gunnar Larson 04 Mar '24

04 Mar '24

This is crazy. By the way, there are two RICOs happening in New York right now. And, FTX is not the biggest fraud in America.. Gunnar ---- Tesla Stock For Fees? Attys Who Got Musk's Pay Cut Say Yes <https://www.law360.com/cannabis/articles/1809096?nl_pk=c844ee6a-f80e-4e60-b…> By Lauren Berg The lawyers who convinced the Delaware Chancery Court to scuttle Elon Musk's proposed $55 billion Tesla compensation package on Friday filed a request for legal fees that came with a twist — they want to be paid in Tesla stock that rounds out to about $5.6 billion. Brief attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/cannabis/articles/1809096?nl_pk=c844ee6a-f80e-4e60-b…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/cannabis/articles/1809096?nl_pk=c844ee6a-f80e-4e60-b…>

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Trump Challenges Origins Of Prosecution In Fla. Docs Case
by Gunnar Larson 04 Mar '24

04 Mar '24

Trump Challenges Origins Of Prosecution In Fla. Docs Case <https://www.law360.com/governmentcontracts/articles/1806354?nl_pk=4126fe73-…> By David Minsky The special counsel's office prosecuting Donald Trump's criminal case on mishandling classified documents told the Florida federal judge overseeing the case on Friday that his attorneys don't have a viable claim challenging the origins of the prosecution team, arguing that intelligence agencies had no role in determining the charges against the former president. Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/governmentcontracts/articles/1806354?nl_pk=4126fe73-…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/governmentcontracts/articles/1806354?nl_pk=4126fe73-…>

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Iranian National Faces 20 Years For Defense Hack Scheme
by Gunnar Larson 04 Mar '24

04 Mar '24

Iranian National Faces 20 Years For Defense Hack Scheme <https://www.law360.com/governmentcontracts/articles/1808540?nl_pk=4126fe73-…> By Rae Ann Varona An Iranian national faces up to 20 years in prison for his alleged role in a yearslong hacking scheme that targeted U.S. companies, including defense contractors, often by using fake female personas on social media, according to a freshly unsealed indictment. Indictment attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/governmentcontracts/articles/1808540?nl_pk=4126fe73-…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/governmentcontracts/articles/1808540?nl_pk=4126fe73-…>

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