海角大神

Who鈥檚 responsible for flawed code? Right now it鈥檚 user beware. But one result of the global ransomware attack may be a push for software companies to take more ownership of their mistakes.

This next story is about a court challenge to the so-called Trump travel ban. Or is it? The Monitor鈥檚 Henry Gass dug a little deeper and found that this case is also about the power of a single judge to define the rule of law and its reach.

The best way to defeat an enemy is to unite with your neighbors, your allies, in common cause. World War II taught that lesson. So, it鈥檚 perhaps no surprise that Trump鈥檚 鈥淎merica First鈥� foreign policy talk fades as this administration engages in the global effort to defeat militant Islamists.

To idealists, pragmatists are often seen as those who abandon their principles. But progress in the US Congress, means finding a path forward with those belonging to another party. The Monitor鈥檚 Francine Kiefer profiles six key senators who may not be high profile, but are quietly finding ways to make harmony out of discord.

China鈥檚 Communist Party is militantly atheist. But even the state is recognizing that morality is a key ingredient in every effectively functioning society. A new book explores the irrepressible quest for spirituality in China, where 1 in every 3 people is now practicing Buddhism, Daoism, Islam, or 海角大神ity.

Just days before last week鈥檚 massive cyber assault known as WannaCry struck computers in at least 150 countries, the telecommunications giant NTT issued a report on digital threats worldwide. One of its conclusions: 鈥淚n today鈥檚 environment, everyone has an important role to play in cybersecurity.鈥�

The advice was prescient. The May 12 鈥渞ansomware鈥� attack that spread from China to Spain was slowed down by a 22-year-old British聽man who lives with his parents and who is self-taught in cybersecurity. His quick work in buying a web domain name connected to the cyber worm ended up being a temporary kill switch. This gave valuable time for companies, governments, and other users of Microsoft鈥檚 Windows OS to protect their systems and data, especially in the United States.

His $10 purchase saved billions. More to the point, his action shows that the users of digital devices connected to the internet must always be alert to hackers, even if only to notify experts. So-called phishing attacks like WannaCry, which often come through email, are responsible for as much as 73 percent of malware being delivered to organizations worldwide.

The NTT report says cybersecurity requires much more than a technological fix. New security software cannot keep up with evolving threats. The key solution is for people to be alert and to work together.

鈥淭o successfully navigate these challenges,鈥� the report states, 鈥渙rganizations are going to be required to rely on their users more than ever.鈥� This includes such steps as keeping software up to date with security patches, using complex passwords, and watching for potential cyberattacks in email, texts, and other methods.

A similar recommendation was offered last December by the US Commission on Enhancing National聽Cybersecurity, a nonpartisan panel set up by President Obama. Among its 16 suggestions, it said that effective cybersecurity 鈥渄epends on consumer and workforce聽 awareness, education, and engagement in protecting their digital experience.鈥� Individuals must keep advancing their 鈥渦nderstanding and capabilities as vital participants in shaping their own 鈥� and the nation鈥檚 鈥� cybersecurity.鈥�

In a letter to The Washington Post, the commission鈥檚 former executive director, Kiersten Todt, wrote: 鈥淲e have to stop giving each other a free pass on our聽personal responsibility聽for聽cybersecurity. If you have a smartphone, use a computer, use a Fitbit or connect your baby monitor to a computer, you need to know more about聽cybersecurity.鈥�

To assist digital users, the commission called for a private body to develop the equivalent of a 鈥渘utritional label for technology products. Such an impartial, third-party assessment would help consumers better use cyber tools and curb large-scale harmful activity in cyberspace.

The NTT report makes one other and necessary point about the role of cyber experts in assisting computer users: 鈥淥ur end goal is not to create fear, uncertainty, and doubt or to overcomplicate the current state of the threat landscape, but to make聽cybersecurity聽interesting and inclusive for anyone facing the challenges of security attacks....鈥�