Mobuoy criminals who polluted Derry drinking water told judge their health suffered from being taken to court
Gerard Farmer lied about his role, absurdly claiming people may have sneaked in to dump vast quantities of toxic waste because the gates were unlocked
The two criminals responsible for a vast toxic dump polluting Londonderry's drinking water repeatedly lied about their role — and then claimed when caught it was hurting their own health.
The businessmen were key to a racket worth tens of millions of pounds centred on an environmental crime which will pollute a large tract of land outside Derry for generations to come.
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The Independent
41 minutes ago
- The Independent
AP PHOTOS: School shooting in Austria leaves 10 people dead
A former student opened fire at a school in Austria's second-biggest city on Tuesday, fatally wounding 10 people and injuring many others before taking his own life, authorities said.
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
DragonForce and Scattered Spider: Inside the hacker groups linked to M&S cyberattack
Marks & Spencer has finally reopened its online orders, months after a cyber attack which is set to cost the British high street retailer £300 million in profits this year. This comes as a new hacking group has been connected with the incident, after it was revealed the DragonForce group sent M&S CEO Stuart Machin an email days after it faced a major cyberattack gloating about the hack and demanding ransom payment. The email, seen and reported by the BBC, said: 'We have marched the ways from China all the way to the UK and have mercilessly raped your company and encrypted all the servers.' DragonForce aren't the only group that have been connected with the attack on the retailer, as the Scattered Spider network had previously been named as the enactors of the social engineering attack. According to Sergey Shyekevich, a researcher from cybersecurity company Checkpoint, more hacker groups are forming alliances on the dark web. 'Co-operation between two powerful groups is very interesting,' he says. 'It's one outcome we see on the dark web more and more, alliances between big groups.' Here's all we know about the two hacker groups What is DragonForce? DragonForce is a hacker organisation that offers Ransomware to cyber-criminal affiliates for a 20 per cent cut of any ransoms collected. This means that for a fee, they lease out their malware through dark web marketplaces to cyber-criminals. While the organisation originally started working in 2023, they've had a massive re-marketing of their business model in the past couple of months. 'In the last two months, they started to become very active in one of the biggest dark web forums,' says Sergey, who says they have marketed themselves as a 'Ransomware Cartel', cornering that market on the dark web in the past month. 'They started being more aggressive I think a few weeks before all the attacks in the UK,' he adds. Researchers have claimed they operate out of Malaysia, with some disputing this and saying they are located in Russia. As well as the M&S hack, DragonForce has been linked to the Co-op cyberattack. What is Scattered Spider? Scattered Spider is a community of hackers that targets huge organisations across different sectors using social engineering tactics. 'They're very good at social engineering of different types,' Sergey says, adding that in the past they have used SIM swapping and impersonated IT staff to trick people into letting them use their systems. Believed to be a community of young adults across the US and UK, the group gained notoriety for their involvement in hacking and extorting two of the largest casino and gambling companies in the United States. 'They understand human nature and how big corporations work,' says Sergey. 'They're very successful.' In 2023 they were linked to the hacking and extortion of Caesars Entertainment and MGM Resorts International, which led the former to pay a ransom of approximately £11 million ($15 million). They were able to access a significant number of driver's licence numbers and possibly even Social Security numbers of the casino customers through the ransomware demand. A 17-year-old hacker from the United Kingdom was arrested in connection with the hack and attempted ransom in July 2024. How did the cyberattack happen? M&S first disclosed they had experienced a cyberattack on 22 April, which had disrupted their online operations and even halted contactless payments. Hundreds of agency workers at the company were told not to come into work as the retailer dealt with the fallout of the cyberattack. Customer personal data – which could have included names, email addresses, postal addresses and dates of birth – was also taken by hackers in the attack. M&S revealed last month that the attack was caused by 'human error', as Mr Machin said in an annual figures report in May that the hackers gained access to the company's IT systems through a third party. He said at the time: 'We didn't leave the door open, this wasn't anything to do with under-investment. Everyone is vulnerable. For us, we were unlucky on this particular day through some human error.' Responding to attacks on the retail sector, the NCSC put out advice to the industry and responded to speculation that the Scattered Spider group had used social engineering to target IT help desks and perform password and MFA (multi-factor authentication) resets. 'Criminal activity online – including, but not limited to, ransomware and data extortion – is rampant,' their blog post wrote. 'Attacks like this are becoming more and more common. And all organisations, of all sizes, need to be prepared.' Deputy Director Paul Foster, head of the NCA's National Cyber Crime Unit, said: 'Specialist NCA cybercrime officers are working closely with law enforcement partners to investigate the recent cyber incidents affecting the retail sector. Identifying the criminals responsible and bringing them to justice is a top priority. 'We are considering the incidents individually, but have a range of hypotheses and are mindful they may be linked. 'The impact of these incidents has been significant and businesses will understandably be concerned. I'd encourage all organisations to follow advice on the NCSC's website to ensure they have effective cyber security measures in place to help prevent attacks. 'I'd also urge those that do unfortunately fall victim to an attack to engage with law enforcement as part of the reporting process. The NCA and policing will investigate covertly and discreetly, as well as support the recovery of systems and data.' How much money has M&S lost? The fallout from the cyberattack saw the company lose £650 million of value in a matter of days. M&S said it expected to take an estimated £300 million hit to profits this year, as they predicted disruption to its online business to last into July. What has M&S said in response? As M&S reopened its online operations, they put out a statement which said: 'You can now place online orders with standard delivery to England, Scotland and Wales. Delivery to Northern Ireland will resume in the coming weeks. 'We will resume click and collect, next-day delivery, nominated-day delivery and international ordering in the coming weeks.'
North Wales Chronicle
an hour ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Emergency workers to get greater protection from racial abuse in house calls
The Government said it would close an existing loophole that allows people to get away with racial and religious abuse towards police, fire and ambulance workers making house calls. The measures were tabled on Tuesday as amendments to the Government's Crime and Policing Bill. It is currently illegal to racially or religiously abuse anyone in public, but this does not extend to behaviour within a private home under the Public Order Act 1986. The gap was originally designed to ensure that laws allowing police to keep public spaces free from serious disorder did not overstep into private conversations held in homes. The Home Office said the law has left 'emergency workers vulnerable and unprotected to racial and religious-based abuse and harassment during house calls', and 'unable to hold the perpetrators to account for their behaviour'. The department added that 'reports of emergency workers being abused for their race or religion while in private homes have increased'. Under the change, those abusing emergency workers in any setting could face a maximum sentence of two years' imprisonment. Policing minister Dame Diana Johnson said emergency workers 'should never have to tolerate abuse due to their race or religion while simply doing their job'. Dame Diana added: 'By closing this loophole, we're sending a clear message that racial and religious abuse directed towards those who serve our communities will not be tolerated.' Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said the new measures would 'crack down on perpetrators'. Mr Streeting added: 'Our emergency workers carry out lifesaving work every day and deserve to feel safe from violence or intimidation. 'Anyone who violates this core principle brings shame on themselves and will feel the full force of the law, wherever they are.' Andy Rhodes, director of the National Police Wellbeing Service, said the amendment would 'better protect officers and staff who are there to protect the public'. Mr Rhodes added: 'Sadly, the role they play means they can often be faced with some incredibly challenging and hostile situations, especially in private homes, and over time this can take a toll. 'The protection of our officers and staff is a clear priority for all police chiefs. Hate crime has a devastating impact on individual victims and racial and faith-based discrimination against officers or emergency workers cannot be tolerated in any form.' Minister for Fire Alex Norris said the Government 'stands firmly behind emergency service workers and will not tolerate abusive behaviour towards those risking their lives to keep us safe'.
