British Airways hackers used the same skimming tactics that breached Ticketmaster UK

British Airways reported a breach last week that affected about 380,000 customers’ data. Threat management firm RiskIQ revealed today that the same criminal group behind a Ticketmaster UK breach also attacked British Airways.

In a previous report, RiskIQ found that Ticketmaster’s breach was the work of the criminal group Magecart. It injected scripts onto a compromised customer service product on Ticketmaster’s site in order to steal personal data. According to RiskIQ, Magecart tends to use scripts to steal customer data that are entered on online payment forms, usually through compromised third-party services these sites use.

RiskIQ analyzed the source code from British…

Continue reading…

New approach to conserving tree species

Researchers have developed an evidence-based approach to designing ex situ collections that effectively preserve a target species’ genetic diversity, which can be tailored for conservation of any tree species. This will allow for efficient, targeted seed collecting efforts, including number of populations to sample, the appropriate number of seeds to collect from each tree, and best choice of populations to target in a species’ range.

Mysteries of deep soil carbon unravelled

Huge amounts of carbon are stored in deep soil. Scientists uncover the conditions that will cause that carbon to stay underground or be emitted into the atmosphere as climate-destabilizing carbon dioxide.

What catches our eye

Our unconscious gaze is controlled by an automatic selection process computed by a neural network in the brain. Details of this computation have now been studied and could soon become relevant for robotic implementations.

Shadow of the Tomb Raider is a disappointing conclusion to a thrilling trilogy

As Mission Impossible: Fallout has decisively proven, there’s nothing wrong with sticking to a formula if it’s good and you know how to build on it. Tomb Raider had a great formula: its electrifying 2013 reboot was a bold, tight reinvention of Lara Croft’s adventures for modern times, while 2015’s sequel Rise of the Tomb Raider expanded on the idea and upped the action movie excess.

The problem with Shadow of the Tomb Raider, the third game in the reboot trilogy, isn’t just that it’s formulaic. It plays as well as ever, the pacing is spot-on, and it’s often extremely beautiful. But without any substantial upgrades to the action, anything to escalate the drama, or any way of generating genuine emotional resonance, it ends up feeling…

Continue reading…