Cybercrime surges above $120-bn in Southeast Asia

Authorities must cooperate internationally, regulate at home, to stem online crime spree.

THE RAPID growth of Bitcoin-related scams and other cybercrimes has prompted the United Nations to urge member countries, including Thailand, to step up their legal safeguards against potential economic losses.

Cybercrime-related losses worldwide top US$600 billion (Bt19.6 trillion), said Julien Garsany, deputy regional representative of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

Garsany told a Bangkok seminar on cryptocurrency and cyber-crime that the cost of economic and other damage to Asian countries alone ranges between $120 million and $200 million, making it essential for law-enforcement and justice officials in various countries to work together to tackle the issue.

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Thailand has also won support from the international community after an executive decree was issued recently to regulate all digital assets, including Bitcoin and initial coin offerings (ICOs).

Kittipong Kittayarak, executive director of the Thailand Institute of Justice, said criminals have now turned to using cryptocurrencies to commit crimes such as money laundering, terrorism financing and illicit ransom payments. They also use cryptocurrencies to pay for child pornography, malware, narcotics, weapons and human trafficking via the so-called “darknet”, whose computer server locations are unknown.

The number of cryptocurrency crimes in Thailand remains small so far but is expected to increase rapidly in the near future. The country needs to boost public awareness and readiness to tackle this issue, Kittipong said.

Justice Minister ACM Prajin Chantong told the seminar that a shortage of experts in this field means Thailand needs to expand its collaboration with other countries.

Dr Narin Phetthong, an Interpol specialist on criminal activity involving cryptocurrencies, said the most prominent cases in Thailand included a huge Bitcoin robbery in Phuket allegedly carried out by Russian criminals and the Bt800-million Bitcoin scam in which a Finnish owner of bitcoins was allegedly cheated by Thais.

Alexandru Caciuloiu, the UNODC’s cybercrime project coordinator, said criminal activity involving cryptocurrency could take many forms, including their use by prostitution rings to launder money and crypto-hacking in which computer servers are accessed without authorisation to mine Bitcoins and other digital units.

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 Regional operation

Narin said Interpol now has a regional operation in Singapore with a unit dedicated to cybercrimes in Asean countries. Owing to concerns on the expected rise of these crimes, Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is now tasked with regulating all digital assets in the country.

Bhume Bhumiratana, a consultant of SEC, said licensing and registration with the authorities is now required for several types of business involving digital assets, including cryptocurrency exchanges, dealers and brokers. Such regulator oversight could help prevent fraud and other wrongdoing, Bhume added.

Preventive measures such as licensing and “know your customer” (KYC) regulations imposed on banks and other financial institutions will allow the authorities to trace owners of digital assets used in criminal activities.

Poramin Insom, founder of the Zcoin and TDAX cryptocurrency exchanges in Thailand, said only 0.2 per cent of the Thai population currently use Bitcoins and similar currencies. He predicts that figure will grow 10 per cent over the next five years.

Poramin said the current regulations on all digital assets are good for the country and potential users, as well as investors who want to know the rules to avoid problems with regulators.

 However, authorities must avoid over-regulating digital assets and other new technologies as Thai innovators could be negatively affected, cautioned Prin Panitchpakdi, a member of SET’s board of governors and director of National Innovation Agency. 

Source - TheNation

 

#Thailand - Hua Hin beach under watch after shark attack admitted

Authorities were on Wednesday keeping a close watch on popular Hua Hin Beach in Prachuap Khiri Khan after it was confirmed that a Norwegian tourist was attacked by a shark there on Sunday.

Officials had initially tried to pass off the man’s severe leg injury as being a gash from sharp rocks, but Jatuporn Buruphat, deputy director general of the Marine and Coastal Resources Department, acknowledged at a press conference at Bangkok Hua Hin Hospital on Wednesday morning that the wound was caused by a shark, most likely a bull shark.

The story changed after the abbot of Wat Tham Khao Tao released video showing four sharks swimming off the beach near his temple. The abbot warned that if no action was taken, someone could be killed.

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 Jatuporn said a marine veterinarian had visited the hospital to inspect the tourist’s injury along with Dr Thassapol Krachangmala, a shark expert from his department.

The hospital’s deputy director, Dr Pongsak Boonleephan, told them the wound was caused by a toothed marine creature. Photos indicated the animal was a shark, most likely a bull shark.
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Prachuap Khiri Khan’s deputy governor promptly dispatched officials to watch over the beach and erect signs warning people not to swim out further than 20 metres.

Officials also spoke to the abbot who recorded the video of lurking sharks.

Jatuporn said camera drones operated from an Army base in Hua Hin spotted two sharks, each 1.5 metres long, swimming near the same beach.

Source - TheNation 

#Somalia's deadliest bombing kills 276

Desperate Somalis searched for news of missing loved-ones on Monday, after a massive truck bomb in Mogadishu killed at least 276 people and left 300 injured in the deadliest ever attack to hit the conflict-torn nation.

Residents of the Somali capital, while wearily accustomed to regular bombs and attacks by Islamist militants, have been left stunned by the monster explosion Saturday which gutted surrounding buildings and left victims burned beyond recognition.

A statement from the information ministry on Monday said "276 people were killed in the blast... and 300 wounded were admitted at the different hospitals in Mogadishu."

The government said it had set up an emergency committee to help relatives find the missing, with a crisis centre in the capital that residents can turn to.

Police official Ibrahim Mohamed told AFP that many of the victims were "burned beyond recognition" in what he described as "the deadliest attack ever."

Turkey sent a military plane full of medical supplies to Mogadishu on Monday, also evacuating some of the injured for treatment. 

The blast occurred at a junction in Hodan, a bustling commercial district which has many shops, hotels and businesses in the city's northwest. Several experts told AFP the truck was probably carrying at least 500 kilogrammes (1,100 pounds) of explosives.

Abdulahi Nuradin was one of many helping friends and family hunting for news of the missing.

"It has been more than 24 hours now and we don't have any traces or information about the sister of my friend. We can assume she is dead, with her flesh somewhere amongst the horribly burned dead bodies," he told AFP.

"We went to several hospitals to seek any information but no to avail, the family is now 99 percent convinced she is dead, I saw so many severed pieces of human flesh at the hospitals, you cannot even look at them," he added.

Local government official Muhidin Ali said more than 100 bodies who were impossible to identify had already been buried.

"The gruesome dead bodies were displayed at the hospitals for relatives but a few were recognised and most of them not at all, the devastation is something beyond the imagination of humankind," he said.

Source - TheJakartaPost

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Praying for London

Pray For London Memes & Tributes To Share In Solidarity With Victims.

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A van ploughed into pedestrians and several people were stabbed in central London on Saturday, leaving at least 20 casualties in what police called a "terrorist" attack days before a general election.
Armed police opened fire during two "terrorist incidents" at London Bridge and nearby Borough Market, a popular nightspot teeming with bars on a warm summer evening.
"We can confirm we have taken at least 20 patients to six hospitals across London," the London Ambulance Service said in a statement.
Witnesses described a van speeding into several pedestrians on London Bridge and then a knife-wielding man sprinting towards a bar packed with revellers enjoying a Saturday night out.
One witness described seeing five assailants and several people said they were locked inside pubs and restaurants by police and had to come out with their hands on their heads.
Italian photographer Gabriele Sciotto, who was watching the Champions League final at the Wheatsheaf pub in Borough Market, said he saw three men being shot just outside the pub.

In his picture, a man wearing combat trousers, with a shaved head and what looked like a belt with canisters attached to it could be seen on the ground with two more bodies behind him.
Pictures showed medical staff attending to apparent victims of the attack and a helicopter buzzing just metres over London bridge, one of the major arteries in the City business district.
Police responded rapidly with dozens of emergency vehicles and authorities led shellshocked members of the public away from the scene.
The attack came more than a week after a suicide bomber killed 22 people at a concert in the northern city of Manchester and days ahead of the June 8 election, where security is a major theme.
It also sparked harrowing memories of an attack on Westminster Bridge when 52-year-old British Muslim convert Khalid Masood rammed his car into pedestrians before crashing into the barriers surrounding parliament and then stabbing a police officer to death.
It is the latest in a string of attacks to hit Europe, including in Paris, Berlin and Saint Petersburg.

- 'Potential act of terrorism' -

Police said the first reports of a "vehicle in collision with pedestrians on London Bridge" came at 10:08pm local time ( 2108 ) and were quickly followed by "reports of stabbings in Borough Market," at the south end of the bridge.
"Armed officers responded and shots have been fired," police said.
Prime Minister Theresa May confirmed the "terrible incident in London" was being treated as "a potential act of terrorism."
She will hold an emergency ministerial meeting later on Sunday and Facebook activated its safety check function for people in London to let their loved ones know they are safe.
US President Donald Trump offered his help, tweeting "WE ARE WITH YOU. GOD BLESS!"
French President Emmanuel Macron said France was "more than ever at Britain's side." 
US pop star Ariana Grande, whose concert in Manchester was the scene of a terror attack last week that claimed 22 lives, tweeted: "Praying for London".

- 'Her throat had been cut' -

Witnesses on London Bridge reported seeing a van mounting the pavement and hitting pedestrians and a man with a knife running.
"There was a van that crashed into the fences on London Bridge. And then there was a man with a knife, he was running. He came down the stairs and went to the bar," Dee, 26, who was visibly in shock and declined to give her last name, told AFP.
BBC reporter Holly Jones, who was there at the time of the incident, said she saw a van driven by a man travelling "at about 50 miles (80 kilometres) an hour".
She said about five people were being treated for injuries after the vehicle mounted the pavement and hit them.
"There's several police boats with torchlights searching the Thames at the moment," she told BBC radio.
She added that she saw a man, who had his shirt off and was in handcuffs, being arrested by police.
Alex Shellum at the Mudlark pub near the scene of the attack said a woman had come into the bar "bleeding heavily from the neck".
"It appeared that her throat had been cut," he told the BBC.

- 'Large blade' -

Another witness, who gave his name as Alessandro, also told BBC radio that he saw a van strike several people on London Bridge.
"I saw this van going left and right, left and right, trying to catch as many people as he could. And people just tried to get out of the way of the van.
"Then I tried to help people, wounded people."
Husband and wife Ben and Natalie told BBC Radio 5 Live they were outside Borough Market when they witnessed the incident there.
Ben said: "We saw people running away and then I saw a man in red with a large blade, at a guess 10 inches long, stabbing a man, about three times.
"It looked like the man had been trying to intervene, but there wasn't much he could do. He was being stabbed quite coldly and he slumped to the ground."
Ben said the man then walked towards the Southwark Tavern. He said they saw a metal chair being thrown towards the man.
"Then we heard three gunshots, definitely gunshots, and we ran."

Sourse - TheJakartaPost

#Jakarta shocked by deadly bombings days before Ramadhan.

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Only hours before Jakartans looked forward to enjoying the Ascension of Jesus Christ public holiday, a twin bomb attack struck the Kampung Melayu Transjakarta bus terminal on Wednesday night.

Two suspected suicide bombers died instantly, the police said.

At least five policemen who were escorting a traditional parade to welcome the Islamic fasting month of Ramadhan also fell victim, three of whom are reported to have died. At least five civilians were also injured.

The terrorist attack took place while the world was still mourning the victims of the suicide bombing of the concert by US pop star Ariana Grande in Manchester, UK, only a day before.

The busy Transjakarta bus rapid transit hub in East Jakarta and the surrounding area descended into chaos after the explosions. The terminal is located in a densely populated area.

Footage and pictures of the scene have gone viral on social media. Some of the footage shows people panicking, screaming and running away from the terminal. Other images depict scattered body parts.

Traffic around the scene was blocked off and rerouted.

A police officer guards the bomb site at the Kampung Melayu bus station in East Jakarta. (Antara/Sigid Kurniawan)

National Police spokesman Insp. Gen. Setyo Wasisto said one explosion occurred at a motorcycle parking lot.

“The glass at the corridor seven [bus stop], where passengers alight, was smashed to pieces,” Transjakarta president director Budi Kaliwono said, adding that the Transjakarta service would continue, but would not stop at Kampung Melayu.

He added that no Transjakarta staff or passengers were among the casualties and urged members of the public to immediately report any suspicious activities.

The injured victims were treated at the Premier Hospital and Hermina Hospital in East Jakarta.

As of midnight, no claim of responsibility for the attack had been received.

Setyo said he was optimistic the police would be able to identify the perpetrators and any possible terrorist ring soon.

“The body parts [of the attackers] remain at the scene. The parts from the neck above are still intact so the face can be identified,” he said.

Mobile Brigade personnel from the Jakarta Police are deployed to the area nearby the Kampung Melayu bus terminal in East Jakarta following bomb blasts on Wednesday evening.(Antara/Sigid Kurniawan)

The attack is believed to have been targeted at the police, making it the latest terror attack to have targeted the police in recent years.

On Jan. 14, 2016, Jakarta was rocked by multiple explosions, including one at a police post, and gunfire around the Sarinah shopping mall in Central Jakarta. At least eight people, including four attackers and four civilians, were killed. A total of 20 people were injured, including five police officers.

Setyo said the police had detected possible attacks in Jakarta. “We were not able yet to identify when or where [they might happen],” he said.

Setyo said the police suspected the perpetrators of the attack were related to terror groups behind other attacks in other countries, including the Manchester bombing.

#PrayForJakarta and #KamiTidakTakut (We are not afraid) emerged on the worldwide internet trending topic list immediately after the incident.

“Everyone, please stay safe! #PrayforJakarta,” Singer-songwriter Raisa posted on her twitter handle @Raisa6690, which has been retweeted by more than 1,000 users as of 1 a.m. on Thursday.

Source - TheNation