Wie de afgelopen ochtenden in de auto stapte op Voorne-Putten kon er, letterlijk en figuurlijk, niet omheen: file, file en nog eens file. Door werkzaamheden aan de Suurhoffbrug liep al het verkeer vast. Dat zorgt voor vrachtwagens door woonwijken van Oostvoorne en een onveilig gevoel bij inwoners. "Het is levensgevaarlijk."

Oil rises above $100 as attacks on ships hit new high, amid reports Trump is discussing launching strikes before the US midterms

A tanker sailing off the north coast of Qatar has been attacked, causing an unknown number of casualties, a British maritime security agency said. The attack came as Iran declared it would close a route in the strait of Hormuz being used to circumvent Tehran’s blockade of traffic.

The vessel was in the Gulf, about 500km (300 miles) west of the strait of Hormuz, when it reported being struck “by multiple projectiles”, the UK Maritime Trade Operations said on Wednesday. The UK authority did not specify the origin of the ship.

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Trump briefly stepped away from the microphone after one protester appeared to approach the stage

Donald Trump’s latest campaign rally was rocked by repeated protests on Wednesday as the US president urged Texas voters to back embattled Senate candidate Ken Paxton.

At least half a dozen demonstrators interrupted the US president during his remarks in San Antonio, with some led away by police. One was physically assaulted by an older Trump supporter as he tried to leave the arena.

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Just wanted to dip in here to say that Amazon is running another one of their sales for Prime members, which can be a great opportunity to upgrade some tech items at lower prices, especially with the price increases we’ve seen recently. Just a couple of quick things:

• The AirPods Pro 3 are my daily headphones; I really do love them. They’re $179 right now ($249 regular price), which I think is the lowest price they’ve been.
• The 15-inch M5 MacBook Air starts at $1299 (normally $1499). I am typing this on my M4 Air, which is the best computer I’ve ever owned, and the temptation to upgrade is strong.
• If you like your laptops smaller, the 13-inch M5 MacBook Air is also on sale, starting at $1099 (regularly $1299).

You can find more sale items here. I think these deals expire in a few hours, so hop to it.

And also, other stores like Best Buy often do their own deals around this time and Bookshop.org is offering free shipping. I’m reading Marlon James’ The Disappearers right now and, oof, it’s great but harrowing.

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Nederland is kampioen woonsteun. Waarom is er na al die jaren politieke bemoeienis dan nog steeds zo’n krapte op de woningmarkt? Staat overmatig beleid de oplossingen in de weg?

Deze week kondigde de Spaanse premier Pedro Sánchez vervroegde verkiezingen aan. Redacteur Veerle Schyns over de vraag: wat betekent het als het laatste boegbeeld van links…

Thomas Hawk posted a photo:

Thomas Hawk posted a photo:

Cleaner air makes kids smarter. A 20 year study of over 1100 children in New York found that their memory and sensory skills improved fastest during the periods when local air pollution fell fastest.

Visual identity and graphic communication system for Tiempos inciertos (Uncertain Times), the international congress organised by ADACE, the Spanish Association of Contemporary Art Directors, held at the Federico García Lorca Centre in Granada. The event reflects on the present and future of cultural institutions, addressing issues such as governance, collections, sustainability, new technologies and audiences. The graphic proposal builds on ADACE's distinctive yellow underline, a recurring element of its visual identity, expanding it into a vibrant palette inspired by text highlighters. The title Tiempos inciertos is partially obscured by the bands themselves, evoking a present marked by uncertainty, in which everything seems to be under review and in search of balance.

The United States Department of Justice has charged a man with fraud after he allegedly told clients he could decrypt files locked up by ransomware but actually paid ransoms – and seemingly got away with it for years. The Feds allege that Zohar Pinhasi – aka “Zack Silver” and “Zack Green” – ran a Florida company called “MonsterCloud” that advised ransomware victims not to pay because it had a way to recover encrypted data. “The charges relate to Pinhasi’s claimed ability to decrypt ransomware without paying cybercriminals, purportedly using ‘proprietary tools’ and ‘advanced decryption techniques' on behalf of distressed business owners who came to his company,” according to a DoJ press release. “In fact, Pinhasi allegedly used a portion of his clients’ fees to pay off the ransomware attackers, and then kept the rest, often extracting a substantial markup.” In one case, Pinhasi allegedly charged his client $150,000, paid the $8,200 ransom, and pocketed the rest – but didn’t admit he had paid the ransom. That scheme allegedly worked so well that Pinhasi charged clients more than $19 million and paid more than $8 million in ransom payments. The DOJ’s indictment [PDF] says MonsterCloud’s website mentions its use of “advanced decryption techniques and cutting-edge technology” – the same language found on this monstercloud.com page. The site also contains this claim: “At MonsterCloud, we are not a team of IT Experts. We are the most sophisticated Counter Cyber Terrorism team in the world.” The indictment suggests MonsterCloud was nothing of the sort, and that its claims rang hollow for years. “MonsterCloud's website included ‘testimonials’ and other promotional content, including from at least one compensated spokesperson,” the indictment states. “In May 2019, one such spokesperson – an individual who had provided a paid testimonial for the MonsterCloud website – contacted the defendant Zohar Pinhasi with questions about Pinhasi’s business practices and truthfulness.” “Among other things, the spokesperson asked Pinhasi whether MonsterCloud actually had any proprietary software that would allow MonsterCloud to decrypt encrypted data. Pinhasi responded: ‘MonsterCloud doesn't hold any proprietary technology [to] decrypt the ransomware data.’” Pinhasi faces two counts of wire fraud, and one of wire fraud conspiracy. He could do twenty years on each count, if convicted. The FBI is investigating this case, and it appears further charges could follow as the indictment states Pinhasi had “multiple co-conspirators, individuals whose identities are both known and unknown to the Grand Jury, including MonsterCloud employees and contractors.” ®