Investment bankers and deal lawyers accustomed to regulatory hurdles to their mergers face an unprecedented challenge under U.S. President Joe Biden – antitrust watchdogs who are undaunted when they lose such battles in court.

The U.S. Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have attempted to thwart 22 mergers since Biden came into office in January 2021, according to a Reuters review of announcements from the agencies.

That outnumbers the antitrust challenges during the first two years of former President Barack Obama’s first term in office and is twice as many as in Donald Trump’s first two years, the Reuters analysis shows.

While comprehensive data going back decades is unavailable, Joel Grosberg, an antitrust lawyer at McDermott, Will & Emery LLP, said more mergers are entangled in U.S. antitrust litigation now than at any point in his 25-year career.

“It’s a combination of the FTC and (Justice Department) being willing to litigate and the fact that companies are fighting back,” Grosberg said.

The regulators managed to stop 15 out of the 22 deals, many without a court fight as companies gave up and walked away from their agreement. More recently, they have lost four attempts to block mergers in court, though they are appealing two of the cases.

These losses have not soured regulators’ appetite for challenging mergers. Biden’s appointees – FTC Chair Lina Khan and DoJ antitrust chief Jonathan Kanter – are pressing on, arguing that corporate consolidation has gone too far, harming consumers and workers at a time of rampant inflation.

“Without question, what is clear about this team compared to their predecessors is that they are not haunted by the possibility that they might lose these cases,” said former FTC chair and George Washington University Law School antitrust professor William Kovacic.

Kanter told U.S. lawmakers in September his department would not “back down from bringing meritorious cases.” In a letter in August, Khan told Senator Elizabeth Warren she believed asset sales to remedy competition issues with mergers frequently fell short.

In response to a request for comment, an FTC spokesperson referred Reuters to recent comments that Khan made in her congressional testimony in September about the effects of past consolidation and the need for stronger enforcement.

The Justice Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The biggest deal currently at stake is Microsoft Corp’s (MSFT.O) $69 billion bid for “Call of Duty” maker Activision Blizzard Inc (ATVI.O). The FTC has sued to stop it, arguing it would allow Microsoft’s Xbox to get exclusive access to Activision games and put it in a position to dominate the gaming market. Microsoft is fighting back and last week told a judge the deal would benefit gamers and gaming companies alike.

Cary Kochman, global co-head of M&A at Citigroup (C.N), said deals are taking longer to be approved, forcing companies to “dribble the ball” and “delay engagement on potential transactions” until the regulatory landscape becomes clearer.” Citigroup was not an advisor on the Microsoft-Activision deal.

Bankers and lawyers are advising merger partners to prepare for long battles with regulators. They are pushing for contracts with more time to complete a deal, to account for the possibility of antitrust lawsuits.

“As you’re negotiating things like interim operating covenants that govern what you can and cannot do between signing and closing, you should view them through the lens of having to live with them for 12 to 18 months in some cases,” said Melissa Sawyer, global head of the M&A group at law firm Sullivan & Cromwell.

Break-up fees that acquirers agree to pay their targets if their deal gets shot down by antitrust regulators are also on the rise. This year’s U.S. total of $22.6 billion accounts for 4.6% of deal value, according to Refinitiv, the highest level since the first eight months of 2013, when dealmakers worried about Obama’s antitrust crackdown.

Many companies facing merger challenges say they will fight on, emboldened by the four court losses of the Justice Department and FTC. These include lawsuits to thwart health insurer UnitedHealth Group Inc’s (UNH.N) $8 billion bid to buy health-technology firm Change Healthcare and life sciences company Illumina Inc ‘s (ILMN.O) $7.1 billion acquisition of cancer test developer Grail.

“For the vast majority of deals, when we assess them from an antitrust perspective, we as advisors believe those deals can get done,” said Edward Lee, corporate partner at law firm Kirkland & Ellis.

Four Ukrainian soldiers died while allegedly attempting to carry out a sabotage mission across the Ukrainian-Russian border.

This is Part 1 of “Insecurity,” a series of short films that tells the stories of Americans who aren’t caught by our social safety net. As we will see, the pandemic only made things worse, including for Lisa Ventura, a social worker who finds herself drowning in the endless paperwork required for her clients, and family, to receive the benefits and services they are entitled to and need.

This piece was supported by the journalism nonprofit the Economic Hardship Reporting Project.

The post How the Endless Paperwork of the Pandemic Kept People From Receiving Benefits appeared first on The Intercept.

The pay-per-install (PPI) malware downloader service PrivateLoader is being used to distribute the RisePro info-stealing malware.

The pay-per-install (PPI) malware downloader service PrivateLoader is being used to distribute the information-stealing malware dubbed RisePro, Flashpoint warns.

Threat actors can pay the Pay-per-install PrivateLoader service to download malicious payloads onto infected systems. Pay-per-install services are not a novel business model for threat actors operating botnets. Flashpoint analysts have observed advertisements of these types of services in the past on forums and within Telegram, which is commonly used by these stealers for customer support.

The RisePro stealer first appeared in the threat landscape on December 2022, when it was advertised on the Russian Market underground marketplace

At the time of writing, Russian Market announced the availability of over 2,000 logs allegedly sourced from the RisePro infostealer.

RisePro stealer logs appear on Russian Market. The earliest recorded upload of logs using RisePro occurred on December 12, 2022. (Source: Flashpoint)

Experts pointed out that the presence of the malware on the Russian Market indicates that its popularity within the threat actor community is increasing. 

“Samples that Flashpoint analysts identified indicate that RisePro may have been dropped or downloaded by the pay-per-install malware downloader service “PrivateLoader” in the past year.” reads the analysis published by Flashpoint. “The appearance of the stealer as a payload for a pay-per-install service may indicate a threat actor’s confidence in the stealer’s abilities.”

RisePro is written in C++ and shares similarities with the info-stealing malware Vidar stealer, which was originally a fork of a stealer called “Arkei” that was analyzed in 2018. 

Flashpoint report highlights that RisePro uses dropped dynamic link library (DLL) dependencies also used by the stealer Vidar. 

Researchers assess that RisePro is very likely a clone of Vidar stealer and shared Indicators of compromise (IOCs) for this threat.

Researchers from cybersecurity firm SEKOIA also published an analysis of RisePro and discovered partial source code overlaps with PrivateLoader. Similarities include the string obfuscation technique, HTTP method and port setup, and the HTTP message obfuscation method.

“SEKOIA.IO analysts understanding of the threat is that PrivateLoader is still active and comes with a set of new capabilities. Similarities between the stealer and PrivateLoader could not be ignored and provides additional insight into the threat actor expansion.” concludes SEKOIA.

“SEKOIA.IO analysts first hypothesis is that RisePro Stealer might be a simple PrivateLoader version with pre-configured build to download its own stealer (NB: Side note, this version does not use a Dead Drop Resolver technique). A second hypothesis is that PrivateLoader simply evolved and a different unidentified PPI vendor provides RisePro installation via PrivateLoader.”

Follow me on Twitter: @securityaffairs and Facebook and Mastodon

Pierluigi Paganini

(SecurityAffairs – hacking, malware)

The post Uncovering the link between PrivateLoader PPI service and RisePro stealer appeared first on Security Affairs.

Founded in 2019, Rebellion Defense emerged as a darling of the defense startup industry, backed by powerful Pentagon insiders and high-profile investors like former Google CEO Eric Schmidt. But now, three years later, the company is beginning to look less like Apple and more like Theranos, according to a recent story in Vox.

Lawfare managing editor Tyler McBrien sat down with Vox senior foreign policy writer Jonathan Guyer to discuss his reporting on Rebellion Defense. They talked about the thorny ethical questions of artificial intelligence on the battlefield, the unholy alliance of Silicon Valley and the Pentagon, and why one former Rebellion Defense employee likened the company to a “Fyre Festival led by Jar Jar Binks.”

Getty Images

• Elon Musk said the US Constitution was the “most treasured item” on his bedside table.
• The CEO tweeted a picture of a new perspective of his table after an earlier photo went viral in November.
• The last photo of his table showed two guns, four diet cokes and a painting of George Washington.

Elon Musk appeared to tweet a new picture of his curious bedside table Monday, this time showing off an edition of the US Constitution and other books related to America’s founding.

Musk tweeted the image in response to an account that tweets reported quotes from the billionaire. That account tweeted: “The Constitution is greater than any President. End of story.”

—Musk University | Quotes (@MuskUniversity) December 26, 2022

Musk replied with a picture of three leather-bound books sitting on his bedside table: “The Declaration of Independence”; “The Constitution of the United States of America”; and “Washington’s Rules of Civility by George Washington.” They are underneath what appears to be a red festive card.

Musk said the books were the “most treasured item on my bedside table.”

The background also features a set of coasters and the corner of a painting of George Washington crossing the Delaware River, which Musk previously tweeted in November.

The first November tweet of his bedside table drew scrutiny for its bizarre collection of items. In addition to the ashtray and painting, he appeared to keep two replica guns and four caffeine-free Diet Cokes next to him while he slept.

The books Musk highlighted on Monday also featured in his original post but could not be identified.

The November tweet inspired public figures and influencers, like Logan Paul, to post their own parody pictures of their bedside table. Paul’s also featured a gun, in addition to a Polaroid camera, energy drinks and a Pikachu Pokémon card.

Musk’s latest picture highlighting the US Constitution could be another reference to his self-professed devotion to the First Amendment right to freedom of speech, a stance that has looked flimsy in recent weeks as he deactivated the accounts of journalists he accused of “doxxing” him.

REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

• Paul Krugman has been loudly criticizing bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies for at least a decade.
• The Nobel laureate has labeled them useless, inefficient, and basically worthless.
• Krugman has also described crypto as primarily a tool for criminals, and mostly a Ponzi scheme.

Paul Krugman has repeatedly trashed bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, dismissing them as useless, wasteful, niche, and only valuable due to hype and speculation.

Over the years, the Nobel Prize-winning economist and New York Times columnist has called out the crypto industry for enabling criminals, complicating transactions, preying on vulnerable people, and operating as a pyramid scheme.

Here are Krugman’s 12 best quotes about crypto over the past decade, lightly edited for length and clarity:

1. “People think it’s smart, nay cutting-edge, to create a sort of virtual currency whose creation requires wasting real resources in a way Adam Smith considered foolish and outmoded in 1776.” (“Adam Smith Hates Bitcoin“) (April 12, 2013)

2. “To be successful, money must be both a media of exchange and a reasonably stable store of value. And it remains completely unclear why bitcoin should be a stable store of value.” (“Bitcoin is Evil“) (December 28, 2013)

3. The enthusiasm for cryptocurrencies seems very odd, because it goes exactly in the opposite of the long-run trend. Instead of near-frictionless transactions, we have high costs of doing business, because transferring a bitcoin or other cryptocurrency unit requires providing a complete history of past transactions. Instead of money created by the click of a mouse, we have money that must be mined — created through resource-intensive computations.” (“Transaction Costs and Tethers: Why I’m a Crypto Skeptic“) (July 31, 2018)

4. “Cryptocurrencies have no backstop, no tether to reality. Their value depends entirely on self-fulfilling expectations — which means that total collapse is a real possibility. If speculators were to have a collective moment of doubt, suddenly fearing that bitcoins were worthless, well, bitcoins would become worthless.” (“Transaction Costs and Tethers: Why I’m a Crypto Skeptic“) (July 31, 2018)

5. “There might be a potential equilibrium in which bitcoin (although probably not other cryptocurrencies) remain in use mainly for black market transactions and tax evasion, but that equilibrium, if it exists, would be hard to get to from here: once the dream of a blockchained future dies, the disappointment will probably collapse the whole thing.” (“Transaction Costs and Tethers: Why I’m a Crypto Skeptic“) (July 31, 2018)

6. “Crypto has been effectively marketed: It manages both to seem futuristic and to appeal to old-style goldbug fears that the government will inflate away your savings, and huge past gains have drawn in investors worried about missing out. So crypto has become a large asset class even though nobody can clearly explain what legitimate purpose it’s for.” (How Crypto Became the New Subprime) (January 27, 2022)

7. “I’m seeing uncomfortable parallels with the subprime crisis of the 2000s. No, crypto doesn’t threaten the financial system — the numbers aren’t big enough to do that. But there’s growing evidence that the risks of crypto are falling disproportionately on people who don’t know what they are getting into and are poorly positioned to handle the downside.” (How Crypto Became the New Subprime) (January 27, 2022)

8. “Bitcoin plays into a fantasy of self-sufficient individualism, of protecting your family with your personal AR-15, treating your Covid with an anti-parasite drug or urine and managing your financial affairs with privately created money, untainted by institutions like governments or banks.” (“Guns, Germs, Bitcoin and the Antisocial Right“) (January 31, 2022)

9. “Cryptocurrencies play almost no role in economic transactions other than speculation in crypto markets themselves. And if your answer is ‘give it time,’ you should bear in mind that bitcoin has been around since 2009, which makes it ancient by tech standards; Apple introduced the iPad in 2010.” (“Crashing Crypto: Is This Time Different?“) (May 17, 2022)

10. “If you believe, as I do, that crypto is to a large extent a Ponzi scheme, this may just happen to be the moment when the scheme has run out of new suckers.” (“Wonking Out: Wasn’t Bitcoin Supposed to Be a Hedge Against Inflation?“) (June 17, 2022)

11. “Jim Chanos went on to call crypto a ‘predatory junkyard.’ Well, I wouldn’t go that far. Actually, on second thought, I would.” (“Wonking Out: Wasn’t Bitcoin Supposed to Be a Hedge Against Inflation?“) (June 17, 2022)

12. “The way I see it, crypto evolved into a sort of postmodern pyramid scheme. The industry lured investors in with a combination of technobabble and libertarian derp; it used some of that cash flow to buy the illusion of respectability, which brought in even more investors. And for a while, even as the risks multiplied, it became, in effect, too big to regulate.” (“Crypto Is Crashing. Where Were the Regulators?“) (July 11, 2022)

Read more: The chief investment officer of a $1.5 billion firm explains how to invest in the companies that benefit from recessions — and shares the top 10 overlooked stocks that have helped him beat the market this year

Thomas Pallini/Insider

• Montreal-based Bombardier produces the world’s biggest and longest-ranged purpose-built private jet.

• The Global 7500 flagship plane can carry 19 people, fly up to 8,860 miles, and cruise at Mach 0.925.
• The aircraft features four distinct living spaces, including a dining room and a private bedroom.

Canadian planemaker Bombardier is a leader in private aviation.Mark Wahlberg’s Bombardier Global Express jet.

Honeywell

While the company previously also produced public transportation vehicles, trains, RVs, and commercial jets, developing the CRJ series. It has transitioned to building business jets only — a market that continues to boom post-pandemic.A Bombardier CRJ-200 airliner.

Yuri Smityuk/TASS/Getty

Source: Reuters, Private aviation boomed during the pandemic and the industry is reshaping itself with new business jets to keep up with growing demand

Many of Bombardier’s planes are best-sellers, like its Challenger 300 and 600 aircraft, but its latest flagship jet has become a fan-favorite.VIP Completions refurbished Bombardier Challenger 605.

VIP Completions

I flew on a $75 million Bombardier Global 7500 private jet from Miami to New Jersey and saw why the ultra-wealthy love the plane

Dubbed the “Ferrari of the Skies,” the company unveiled the $75 million Global 7500 business plane in 2018 and has delivered over 100 to date.Bombardier’s 100th Global 7500 was delivered to VistaJet in March 2022.

Taylor Rains/Insider

Source: Bombardier

Private charter company VistaJet is the aircraft’s biggest operator with over 15 of the type, though other companies like NetJets and Phenix Jet also rent out the plane.

Taylor Rains/Insider

Source: NetJets, Phenix Jet, Bombardier just delivered its 100th Global 7500 business jet built for the ultra-wealthy that features a private bedroom — see inside the ‘Ferrari of the Skies’

Powered by two General Electric Passport engines, the Global 7500 is the world’s largest and longest-ranged purpose-built business jet on the market.Inside a Bombardier Global 7500 demonstration aircraft.

Thomas Pallini/Insider

Source: Bombardier

The plane can fly up to 14 hours across 7,700 nautical miles (8,860 miles) and reach a maximum cruise speed of 0.925 Mach. This can connect New York and Los Angeles in as little as three and a half hours.Inside a Bombardier Global 7500 demonstration aircraft.

Thomas Pallini/Insider

Source: Bombardier

While the plane is ultra-speedy, it is not the world’s fastest. That title goes to the 12-seater Cessna Citation X+, which can reach Mach 0.935.Textron Aviation ended production of the Citation X+ in 2018 to avoid overlap with its super mid-sized Citation Longitude.

Textron Aviation

Source: Textron Aviation, AIN Online

However, one of Bombardier’s Global 7500 planes did break the sound barrier during a test flight in May 2021, exceeding Mach 1.015.Bombardier Global 7500 demonstration aircraft.

Bombardier

Source: Bombardier

The supersonic flight was part of the company’s research for its upcoming Global 8000 — which will be the world’s new fastest purpose-built business plane at 0.94 Mach.The jet is expected to enter service in 2025.

Bombardier

NetJets will be the first customer for Bombardier’s new $78 million private jet, the world’s fastest passenger plane since the Concorde — meet the Global 8000

The Global 7500’s main competitor is Gulfstream’s $78 million G700 private jet. The rival aircraft can fly up to 8,630 miles, reach Mach 0.925, and boats a huge cabin with seating for up to 19 people.The interior of a G700 aircraft, one of the newest in Gulfstream Aerospace’s lineup, is on display at the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) convention and exhibition in Orlando, Florida, U.S. October 17, 2022.

Gregg Newton/Reuters

We were among the first to go onboard Gulfstream’s new $78 million G700 and saw how it plans to stand out among encroaching rivals — see inside

While the G700 is popular among business travelers, Bombardier’s longer-ranged jet can offer more routes and add flexibility for operators — see inside.Inside a Bombardier Global 7500 demonstration aircraft.

Thomas Pallini/Insider

According to Bombardier, the aircraft, which can cost over $10,000 per hour, features four distinct living spaces. This includes a meeting room…

Christinne Muschi/Reuters

…a dining room…Inside a Bombardier Global 7500 demonstration aircraft.

Thomas Pallini/Insider

…a theater room…A VistaJet Bombardier Global 7500 at the Dubai Airshow 2021.

Thomas Pallini/Insider

…and a master bedroom with an attached lavatory.

Taylor Rains/Insider

In total, VistaJet’s aircraft can seat 19 people and sleep eight — two in the bedroom, two on the convertible couch in the entertainment section, two in the dining room, and two in the meeting room.The entertainment area’s convertible couch.

Taylor Rains/Insider

The latter four are accommodated thanks to Bombardier’s signature Nuage swiveling seats that convert into double or single beds, similar to what Gulfstream offers.A VistaJet Bombardier Global 7500 at the Dubai Airshow 2021.

Thomas Pallini/Insider

However, in reality, eight sleepers would require six people to be family members or in couples as three are double beds. Otherwise, five people can sleep comfortably — two in the single beds and one in each double.The Gulfstream (pictured) has similar seats that convert into beds.

Taylor Rains/Insider

This configuration sets the jet apart from other competing planes like the Gulfstream G650ER, which can offer four living spaces but can only carry up to 16 people and doesn’t have a dedicated bedroom.

Taylor Rains/Insider

Source: Gulfstream

However, the G700 also boasts a large cabin with up to five living spaces, including a dining room and a private bedroom, and can sleep 13 people.The dining area of the G700.

Courtesy of Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation

Source: Gulfstream

In addition to the main cabin, the front of the jet features the largest galley in private aviation, according to Bombardier, complete with glassware, two convection ovens, a coffee maker, and a refrigerator.VistaJet Global 7500.

VistaJet

Next to the galley is a long couch for crew rest and relaxation…

Vista Global Holdings

…as well as a second lavatory, albeit smaller than the one attached to the bedroom in the back of the jet.The aft lavatory of a VistaJet Bombardier Global 7500.

Thomas Pallini/Insider

In the cockpit are advanced next-generation avionics with fly-by-wire controls, four huge display screens, and heads-up technology.A VistaJet Bombardier Global 7500 at the Dubai Airshow 2021.

Thomas Pallini/Insider

Global 7500 pilots for VistaJet told Insider in November that the ergonomic flight deck design promotes safety, reduces workload, and helps better manage flight duties.A VistaJet Bombardier Global 7500 at the Dubai Airshow 2021.

Thomas Pallini/Insider

One of the most innovative features of the jet is its six-person dining area, which is created by fitting a leaf between the two sets of loungers and side tables.Dining inside the Bombardier Global 7500.

Bombardier

Also onboard the jet are several other amenities, including power outlets and retractable tables…A VistaJet Bombardier Global 7500 at the Dubai Airshow 2021.

Thomas Pallini/Insider

…nice Touch technology that allows guests to adjust things like temperature and lighting using a dial…A VistaJet Bombardier Global 7500 at the Dubai Airshow 2021.

Thomas Pallini/Insider

…and the company’s unique Soleil lighting system that helps reduce leg lag on long-haul flights.

Bombardier

After touring the aircraft on several different occasions, it’s clear why deep-pocket travelers, like Kylie Jenner and Australian billionaire Andrew Forest, are flocking to the business jet.

Taylor Rains/Insider

Its impressive speed, comfort, and economics make it a juggernaut of a plane, and the $10,000+ per rental hour price tag would easily be worth it for those that can afford the luxury.The VIP bedroom in the Bombardier 7500.

Bombardier