All posts tagged: targeting

Red paint attacks continue across London targeting suspected brothels

Red paint attacks continue across London targeting suspected brothels

A fresh attack has renewed concerns that gangsters are continuing to target rival brothels on the streets of London, leaving locals “traumatised”. Mystery surrounds these types of attack. There is no known evidence to suggest the people living in the targeted houses on Lowfield Road are running brothels or are in debt to loan sharks, but it follows a spate of similar incidents across London in recent times. Further east in the capital, Walthamstow has been a particular target where red paint has been splashed, smeared or daubed across multiple properties. One of the buildings is usually singled out with the allegation that it is a “brothel” — the word scrawled on to the exterior. In some cases, handwritten notes have been put through nearby letterboxes, identifying the same property as a brothel. Stella Creasy, the Labour and Cooperative MP for Walthamstow, has previously raised her concerns over these crimes of the night. Following a succession of sinister and still unexplained red paint attacks, she called out the police for failing to treat the repeated …

Louisiana lawmakers advance crackdown targeting illegal online sweepstakes

Louisiana lawmakers advance crackdown targeting illegal online sweepstakes

Louisiana lawmakers are pressing ahead with a push to rein in illegal online sweepstakes-style gaming, after the state House overwhelmingly backed House Bill 883 and sent it over to the Senate this week. Rep. Laurie Schlegel’s proposal cleared the chamber on April 14 with virtually no opposition, winning final votes of 99-0 and 98-0. By April 15, the Senate had taken it up, giving it a first reading and placing it on the calendar for debate. The language in the bill itself spells out that, “Gambling by computer is the intentional conducting, or directly assisting in the conducting as a business of any game, contest, lottery, or contrivance whereby a person risks the loss of anything of value in order to realize a profit when accessing the Internet.” Lawmakers are also zeroing in on newer digital formats that blur the line between gaming and gambling. The proposal explicitly includes platforms that use so-called dual-currency systems, where users can exchange virtual credits for prizes or cash-like rewards while mimicking traditional gambling mechanics. Louisiana sweepstakes bill introduces …

Tennessee advances felony bill targeting prediction market manipulation amid legal fights

Tennessee advances felony bill targeting prediction market manipulation amid legal fights

Tennessee lawmakers are pushing ahead with legislation that would make it a felony to try to sway the outcome of events tied to prediction market conduct when money is on the line. The state Senate signed off on Senate Bill 1992 on Thursday (April 9), backing the proposal 28-1 after first adopting an amendment earlier in the day. The measure mirrors House Bill 2079 and now moves forward as part of a wider effort to regulate emerging online trading platforms built around future events. States that have introduced prediction market restriction/ban bills this year (more can/will follow): -California-Connecticut-Georgia-Hawaii-Illinois-Kentucky-Minnesota-New Jersey-New York-Tennessee-Virginia-Vermont — Ryan Butler (@ButlerBets) March 25, 2026 The bill creates a new criminal charge aimed at people who attempt to influence outcomes while financially invested in them through prediction market contracts. New criminal offense targets prediction market conduct in Tennessee Under the proposal, someone would break the law if they take steps to affect the result of an event while they, or someone working with them, holds a position in a related prediction market. The …

Malaysian senior cop among 6 nabbed for alleged armed robberies targeting wealthy foreigners; US.1 million stolen

Malaysian senior cop among 6 nabbed for alleged armed robberies targeting wealthy foreigners; US$1.1 million stolen

KUALA LUMPUR: Six men, including a senior police officer, were arrested on Wednesday (Apr 8) over their alleged involvement in three armed robberies targeting wealthy foreign nationals, with losses from the heists estimated at RM4.4 million (US$1.1 million). The senior police officer purportedly acted as the coordinator in the heists, allegedly impersonated police officers to gain access to victims’ homes in Kepong in the early hours on Sunday (Apr 5), Kuala Lumpur police chief Fadil Marsus told local news outlets at a press conference on Wednesday.  The suspects reportedly stole three luxury cars – a Toyota Alphard, a Rolls-Royce and a Bentley – and a safe containing RM24,200 and US$1,200 in cash, assorted jewellery and gold bars, according to local news publication The Star. The victims include two Chinese nationals – a man and woman – and an Indonesian woman, aged between 29 and 52, said the police chief. “One of the suspects allegedly threatened the victims with an object resembling a pistol,” Fadil was quoted saying in a Malay Mail report. The arrested police officer has been suspended from …

Iranian hackers are targeting American critical infrastructure, US agencies warn

Iranian hackers are targeting American critical infrastructure, US agencies warn

The U.S. government is warning that Iran-backed hackers are escalating their tactics by targeting American critical infrastructure systems with the aim of causing disruption. In a joint advisory published Tuesday, the FBI, the National Security Agency, the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and the U.S. Department of Energy collectively warned that Iranian government hackers have been exploiting internet-facing systems used across a range of sectors. These include water and wastewater utilities, as well as energy and local government facilities. The agencies did not specifically name any of the targets but said that the hacks were aimed at causing “disruptive effects within the United States” and had already resulted in “operational disruption and financial loss.” The hackers targeted programmable logic controllers and supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) products, which are used to control and manage industrial equipment and systems in critical infrastructure operations, the agencies said. The agencies said that the hackers were able to manipulate information displayed on these devices and maliciously interact with project files that store important device configurations. The …

Israeli death penalty law targeting Palestinians sparks global outcry as far right celebrates

Israeli death penalty law targeting Palestinians sparks global outcry as far right celebrates

TEL AVIV — Far-right supporters of a controversial Israeli death penalty law were popping champagne corks as it cleared the Knesset on Monday night, but its passage has sparked a global chorus of condemnation from allies and international human rights groups. Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content. The new law effectively makes death by hanging the default punishment for murderers who kill “with the intent to deny the existence of the State of Israel” — language that targets Palestinian militants but amounts to a de facto exclusion of Israelis who kill Palestinians. Because the law would accelerate lethal punishments for Palestinians and is almost impossible to apply to Israeli murderers, human rights groups say it’s likely to inspire far more outrage and violence than it prevents. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said in a statement Tuesday that the measure is a “particularly egregious violation of international law” and warned its application to residents of the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip “would …

Tennessee lawmakers advance bill targeting online sweepstakes casinos

Tennessee lawmakers advance bill targeting online sweepstakes casinos

Tennessee lawmakers are taking another step toward tightening rules on online gambling, advancing legislation that targets sweepstakes-style casino platforms officials say are misleading residents. House Bill 1885, introduced by Rep. Scott Cepicky, moved forward Tuesday (March 31) after clearing a House panel with a recommendation for passage. The proposal now heads to the House Finance, Ways, and Means Committee, where lawmakers will weigh its financial impact before deciding whether to move it further along. UPDATE: Tennessee HB1885 targets illegal gambling, including #sweepstakes-style operations. Now recommended for passage and sent to Finance committee @RWW pic.twitter.com/dgStu5s8Ku — Suswati Basu (@suswatibasu) March 31, 2026 The push comes as Tennessee joins a growing list of states examining or proposing restrictions on sweepstakes casinos. Regulators and law enforcement officials have raised concerns that these platforms blur the line between legal promotions and real-money gambling. How the Tennessee sweepstakes casino bill defines illegal activity The online gaming model relies on virtual currencies. Players can buy those currencies or receive them through bonuses, then use them to play casino-style games. In some …

Revealed: the vast illegal casino network targeting UK gamblers | Gambling

Revealed: the vast illegal casino network targeting UK gamblers | Gambling

Immaculately groomed and beaming from ear to ear, Andres Markou looks every inch the golden boy of the gambling sector. The youthful boss of MyStake, a fast-growing digital casino, has been pictured shaking hands with the Brazilian football legend Ronaldinho over a lucrative branding partnership. Elsewhere, he can be seen collecting industry awards, or offering “visionary” insights to interviewers. There is only one hurdle blocking Markou’s ascent to the very top of his trade: he does not exist. The photos seem to be AI-generated fakes and Markou, it appears, is a decoy, deflecting attention from the true faces behind a sophisticated network of illegal online casinos. An apparently falsified image of the supposed MyStake chief executive, Andres Markou, with Brazilian footballer Ronaldinho, right. Illustration: AI-generated image/MyStake Operating outside the law and based in opaque jurisdictions such as the Caribbean island of Curaçao, they are free from the legal duty to protect addicts and stop money laundering. Unlicensed gambling websites have been linked to fraud, financial harm and even suicide. The Guardian and Investigate Europe, an …

Vance Holds First Meeting of a New Anti-Fraud Task Force Targeting Benefit Programs

Vance Holds First Meeting of a New Anti-Fraud Task Force Targeting Benefit Programs

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President JD Vance on Friday held the inaugural meeting of a new anti-fraud task force he’s leading as the Trump administration seeks to show it’s cracking down on potential misuse of social programs. Vance, speaking Friday before the task force held a closed-door meeting, said that the federal government, for decades, had not taken the issue of fraud seriously and that it needed to be tackled with “a whole-government approach.” “This is not just the theft of the American people’s money,” Vance said. “It is also the theft of critical services that the American people rely on.” President Donald Trump, a Republican, has made a crackdown on fraud a central part of his domestic agenda as voters have expressed concern about affordability ahead of November’s midterm elections. That effort comes after allegations of fraud involving day care centers run by Somali residents in Minneapolis prompted a massive immigration crackdown in the Midwestern city, resulting in widespread protests. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat who faced Vance as a vice presidential candidate …

Australia’s post-Bondi crackdown accused of targeting pro-Palestinian voices | Police News

Australia’s post-Bondi crackdown accused of targeting pro-Palestinian voices | Police News

Melbourne – Human rights groups have slammed the Australian government’s new “hate speech” laws, saying they will have a “chilling effect” on those who support the Palestinian cause. Most recently, two activists were arrested and charged for chanting the slogan “From the river to the sea”, a phrase that, along with “Globalise the Intifada”, is now illegal in Australia’s northern state of Queensland. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list Anyone arrested under the new law is faced with a maximum penalty of two years’ imprisonment. Rushed through the New South Wales federal parliament after an attack on a Jewish celebration in Sydney’s Bondi Beach in December, which killed 15 people, the new laws operate at both federal and state jurisdictions and specifically target speech considered anti-Semitic. Arif Hussein, senior lawyer at the Human Rights Law Centre in the New South Wales capital, Sydney, told Al Jazeera the legislation could be used to suppress legitimate criticism of Israel’s genocide in the Gaza Strip. “There are serious concerns that the new laws could have a …