As Indonesia’s Joko Widodo has his Presidency confirmed for a second term, it is worth examining whether continuity in this case means change. Given that the announcement was brought forward a day due to security fears, with security personnel widely visible amid fears that Al-Qaeda would look to disrupt rallies and insinuations from the opposition […]
Indonesia: Komodo country at a crossroads Read More »
An organised criminal gang using the GozNym malware to collectively steal over $100m USD has been dismantled. Working across six countries and two continents, at least ten gang members have now been charged with theft and laundering worldwide. But while the immediate threat of GozNym may be over, it is far from the end of
GozNym and the rise of competitive malware Read More »
Last year, in New York, a crime that had little to commend it in the way of relative scale, daring or violence, came to trial amid great fanfare. The amount stolen was by no means small fry, but certainly not worthy of the resulting media storm – lucrative book deals have now been signed and
As the media circus surrounding military action in Kashmir abates, the fanfare surrounding India’s election result grows. Among the media commentary are the predictable pieces concerning how the conflict will shape the ballot box, fuelling the BJP’s (Bharatiya Janata Party) drive to shore up flagging support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. However, one aspect of
At the confluence of two diametrically opposed cultures and religions, conflict has stalked the high peaks and valleys of Kashmir for centuries. Last month saw the latest and most serious flare up between India and Pakistan for twenty years. Worryingly though, this is not an isolated event, but another in a series of escalating tit-for-tat
Peril between the Peaks Read More »
The 1 Malaysia Development Berhad scandal has it all. Gigantic sums of money, secretive offshore accounts, political corruption, criminal laundering – and a profound question mark over whether lessons can be learnt. In this day and age, it is perhaps less conceivable that such a wide-ranging scam can happen, than that it would still be
1MDB: Out-of-control fraud could happen anywhere Read More »
Political campaigns are fought on two fronts: the ‘ground war’ (doorstepping, rallies) and the ‘air war’ (advertising and social media). While it would be unlikely that a candidate could win using one stream alone, there is considerable debate over which is more effective. Is it the ground game, where time and effort is made to
Hell To Poyais: the Air War in scams Read More »
You are the weakest link. In fact, we all are. However, advanced we make our cyber security systems, the simple fact is that humans make mistakes, humans get complacent. The Aramco hack of 2012 immediately springs to mind. One technician opened a spam email and within hours 35,000 company computers were damaged or destroyed. But
Dr Know – How Will AI Alter International Geopolitics? Read More »
For the first time in its 60 years history, the opposition recently won an election in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Whilst it is too early to state whether or not the transition of power has been peaceful, let alone successful, this could mark a watershed moment in one of Africa’s key economies. In
Transitions in Cobalt Country Read More »
Echoes from Moscow Many Soviet traits have endured long after the Berlin Wall came down. One of the most persistent is the distinctive ‘cult of personality’ that blighted the Soviet political environment since the days of Lenin and Stalin. It has tainted all aspects of society in one way or another. Similarly, in the last
Turkmenistan – The Land of Personality (Cults) Read More »