Russia Accuses US Media of ‘Collusion’ over Biden’s Health
There needs to be an investigation into a possible conspiracy among American political circles and the media to manipulate the public’s perceptions regarding President Joe Biden’s health, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said.
Biden announced on X (formerly Twitter) that he would not seek re-election in November, less than a month before the Democratic National Convention was scheduled to start in Chicago.
Commenting on his announcement in an interview with Russian media, Zakharova noted that it was highly unusual to have just a screenshot of a letter posted on social media rather than a video or audio statement.
READ MORE: Republicans call on Biden to resign as president, Democrats back Harris
“In the modern world, filled with post-truth and deep fakes, it’s very important to leave no room for speculation,” Zakharova said.
Assuming Biden’s letter is authentic, as the US media – and the public alongside them – appear to have done, it “raises the question of investigating what I call the collusion of the American media with political circles, including officials and the so-called expert community, who hid the true state of affairs regarding Biden’s mental health,” she added.
Anyone who truly cares about free speech, transparency, and “our democracy” in America should support this, according to Zakharova.
It’s time to highlight all these statements and actions of the manipulation machine—their propaganda of lies.
Zakharova added that questions about Biden’s cognitive capabilities had been raised four years ago, back in 2020. The Democrat did not bother to campaign actively but stayed in his basement and repeatedly made gaffes in video interviews with supporters and friendly media. He then officially won the election by the most votes ever in US history.
READ MORE: Trump reacts to Biden exiting race
Biden’s personal X account posted the letter on Sunday afternoon, noting that he was not resigning from the presidency but letting the Democrats pick someone else as their nominee “in the best interest of my party and the country.” He later endorsed his vice president, Kamala Harris, for the job.
Trump responded by slamming Biden as the “worst president ever” and cheered for the Harris endorsement, suggesting that defeating her “will be easier than Biden.”
Harris Has “Biggest Fundraising Day” after Biden Drops Out
Donations totalling at least $45 million swelled Democrat coffers in the hours after Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race.
According to fundraising platform ActBlue, “As of 9pm ET [Sunday], grassroots supporters have raised $46.7 million through ActBlue following Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign launch.
“This has been the biggest fundraising day of the 2024 cycle.”
A few hours later, the total was said to be $60 million.
Major Democrat donors have already pledged to back Vice President Kamala Harris. According to Newsweek, venture capitalist Reid Hoffman described Harris as “the right person at the right time,” and will now donate more to her campaign than he already has to the defunct Biden campaign.
Wall Street executive Marc Lasry, who helped raise money for Harris when she ran against Biden in the 2020 Democratic primary, is also ready to support her.
Harris has also received high-profile endorsements from the President and from the Clintons, as well as from Alexander Soros, son of George Soros, who wrote on Instagram, “It’s time for us all to unite around Kamala Harris and beat Donald Trump.”
The Obamas, however, have yet to provide their endorsement for Harris, a clear suggestion that Michelle Obama is weighing up a bid for the presidency. In a statement in which he praised Biden as “one of America’s most consequential presidents” and said his decision to remove himself from proceedings reminds us “that he’s a patriot of the highest order,” former president Barack Obama made it clear that the race to be the Democratic nominee is still wide open.
“We will be navigating uncharted waters in the days ahead,” he wrote.
“But I have extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges.”
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Androids Easier to Hack Than iPhones – Forensics Experts
Android-based phones may be easier targets for hackers and government agencies than iPhones, news outlet 404 Media has claimed, citing leaked documents allegedly intended for the customers of Israeli digital intelligence company Cellebrite.
The issue of cellphone users’ privacy has recently been highlighted after the FBI revealed on Monday that its “technical specialists successfully gained access to Thomas Matthew Crooks’ phone.” The authorities stopped short of divulging what device the suspected shooter in the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump was using.
Over the past few years there have been reports suggesting that thousands of politicians, journalists, activists, and business figures worldwide have had their cellphones accessed with the help of the Israeli spyware program Pegasus. Once installed, the software presumably grants the hacker the ability to read messages, look through photos, track the person’s location, and even switch on the camera and microphone without the knowledge of the phone’s owner.
In its reports on Wednesday, 404 Media alleged that an anonymous source recently sent two documents dating back to April, titled “Cellebrite iOS Support Matrix” and “Cellebrite Android Support Matrix,” respectively. The papers had presumably been given to one of Cellebrite’s clients and were not supposed to make it into the public domain.
READ MORE: Apple bows to pressure to update security notice – Reuters
According to the article, the cellphone forensics company, which sells its tools to federal, state, and local law enforcement as well as to other companies and service providers, was unable to hack a considerable number of modern iPhones available on the market as of April 2024.
Describing Cellebrite’s ability to access devices using various iterations of common mobile operating systems, one of the documents reportedly says tools to hack phones based on iOS 17.4 or newer versions are “In Research,” which means “they cannot necessarily be unlocked with Cellebrite’s tools,” 404 Media claims.
For iOS 17.1 to 17.3.1, the Israeli firm supposedly said in the document that it can access the iPhone XR and iPhone 11 series, released in 2018 and 2019, respectively.
The other leaked document reportedly focuses on Android-based devices, indicating that Cellebrite can hack most of them. However, according to 404 Media, Google Pixel 6, 7, or 8 smartphones in particular remain inaccessible when switched off.
The media outlet reported that Cellebrite had confirmed the authenticity of the documents in an emailed statement. 404 Media quoted the firm’s senior director for corporate communications and content, Victor Ryan Cooper, as saying: “The reason we do not openly advertise our updates is so that bad actors are not privy to information that could further their criminal activity.”
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Ministry of Truth: Japan’s Communications Ministry Proposes Disinformation Law
Only recently, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), an influential Washington think tank, outlined how the US and Japan could bolster their cooperation in “combating misinformation.”
In a report, CSIS noted almost in passing that Japan has in general fallen behind in this activity, but also that the group’s representatives had meetings with officials in Tokyo.
Coincidentally or not, news out of Japan this week says that the country’s Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry is looking at introducing new “anti-disinformation measures.” And, a draft report notes that here, “efforts are not sufficient” while transparency and accountability (ostensibly on the part of internet companies) have not been “adequate.”
That would suggest yet another “Ministry of Truth” and “disinformation law” are in the making somewhere in the world, these taking shape as a draft report details possible measures that social media companies would have to adhere to, going forward.
The report, which notably comes from the Interior Ministry (also in charge of Communications), speaks about the necessity of companies behind social platforms setting up “counter-disinformation systems” themselves, that would deal with what is deemed to be “disinformation” by deleting this content, but also, stepping up “screening of advertisers.”
And once again, time seems to be of the essence, because the report states that the reaction would have to be “prompt.”
The next step is for the draft to become subject to some form of public debate, after which the local press says it will become “official;” and the following step will be making it into law.
The situation reads almost like Japan wasn’t aware it had a “misinformation” problem of a magnitude that requires new and stringent rules, but is now just realizing that, and is almost mimicking the tone and language that’s been present around the topic for years already, in many parts of the world.
Thus, there are some vague and broad “definitions” – the content to be promptly dealt with is that which “contains obvious errors, infringes on the rights of others or is illegal (including disinformation).”
The Japanese plan states that once “a request” comes from a governmental agency, “the operators should make a prompt decision and provide notification as to whether they will delete the information or not.”
What about freedom of expression? The report’s authors seem to think this will do the trick: “The draft also requests that the administrative agency disclose information such as the contents of the request.”
One target is repeat offenders accused of peddling “illegal disinformation,” who will have their content deleted and accounts suspended.
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Biden ‘Mentally Unfit’ to Have Nuclear Codes – Top Republican
US President Joe Biden is facing growing pressure to step down immediately, after announcing that he will not seek reelection in November. Biden has declared that he plans to serve out the remainder of his term, which officially ends in January.
Just moments after Biden announced his decision on Sunday, Rep. Richard Hudson, chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, accused the Democrats of lying to the American people. He argued that if Biden lacks the mental capacity to run for reelection, he cannot continue to serve out the remainder of his term.
“This is a scandal of historic proportions. President Biden is incapacitated, Democrats knew, and they lied to the American people to cover it up. If Biden is mentally unfit to campaign, he is mentally unfit to have the nuclear codes,”Hudson wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
READ MORE: Republicans call on Biden to resign as president, Democrats back Harris
US House Speaker Mike Johnson echoed that sentiment, calling the development an “unprecedented juncture in American history” and urging Biden to resign immediately.
“If Joe Biden is not fit to run for president, he is not fit to serve as president. He must resign the office immediately. November 5 cannot arrive soon enough,” Johnson said in a statement, adding that the Democrats’ prospects “are no better” with Harris.
A host of Republican lawmakers have joined the chorus calling for Biden’s resignation. Florida Senator Rick Scott, Louisiana Representative Steve Scalise, and House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik of New York are among dozens who have demanded that Biden relinquish the presidency.
READ MORE: Kremlin reacts to Biden dropping out of US presidential race
Earlier in the day, before the US leader announced his move, Trump’s running mate, Ohio Senator J.D. Vance, questioned how Biden can “justify remaining President” if he drops out from the race.
“Not running for re-election would be a clear admission that President Trump was right all along about Biden not being mentally fit enough to serve as Commander-in-Chief. There is no middle ground,” Vance wrote.
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World Bank Advisor Praises Pakistan’s Digital ID Push
The introduction of digital public infrastructure (DPI) – that’s the buzzword preferred by the EU, the UN, WEF, and Gates Foundation, as they push for digital ID and payments – has been making good progress in Pakistan.
And a blog post on the World Economic Forum (WEF) website praises this as a development “transforming lives” (namely, in a positive manner).
The post is authored by some of the usual suspects – representatives of the World Bank and the UN-based “Better Than Cash Alliance” and is especially focused on the fact Pakistan has so far issued digital ID cards to over 240 million citizens.
World Bank’s DPI technical adviser Tariq Malik and Better Than Cash Alliance’s Prerna Saxena write that Pakistan’s “digital transformation” has the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) at its core.
Various elements of the controversial DPI scheme are at this time “tested” in less developed countries around the world (referred to in the article as “a select group of nations”), and invariably, the benefits of DPI are advertised as helping, in particular, (financially) underprivileged communities.
The take on what is currently going on in Pakistan is no different: NANDRA’s Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC) integrates digital ID with opening bank accounts, getting a driver’s license, social welfare, etc.
What an opponent may see as dangerous (privacy, but also security-wise) centralization of people’s identities and activities, opening up enormous possibilities for mass surveillance – is “seamless identity authentication for every citizen” as far as the WEF blog post authors are concerned.
Here’s an interesting piece of information: “Within four years of launching the Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) – a social protection initiative to alleviate poverty – CNIC issuance to adults increased by 72%,” the article says.
And during Covid, it proved useful in managing lockdowns by transferring $75 to 12 million households (this was supposed to sustain them for three months.)
Drawing conclusions from Pakistan’s “success story,” the authors stress the need to ensure that regardless of who is in power, they remain committed to implementing DPI, and push for its adoption with “robust legal frameworks.” Last – and probably, really last, as far as fervent DPI proponents go – there’s a mention of “ethical principles.”
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s DPI project is next expected to produce a nationwide digital health records system, among several other initiatives.
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