1.17.2018

Ex-CIA Officer Arrested Under Espionage Act.
Jerry Chun Shing Lee, an ex-covert handler for the Central Intelligence Agency was arrested on charges of retaining national defense information yesterday, a violation of the Espionage Act. Officials believe Lee - who was found carrying a list of names and information identifying US sources in China - played a key role in China's systemic dismantling of the US covert intelligence apparatus in the country beginning in 2010. At least a dozen CIA informants were believed to be kidnapped or killed during the purge. Lee is awaiting trial before a federal court in northern Virginia. For a good background read, check out the New York Times' 2017 reporting on the collapse of the CIA's informant network in China (paywall). 

Bannon Subpoenaed in Russia Probe.
Former White House adviser Steve Bannon confirmed he had received a subpoena by Special Counsel Robert Mueller in the ongoing probe into potential Russian meddling in the 2016 election yesterday. The revelation came at the same time as a 10-hour marathon question and answer session in front of the House Intelligence Committee, where Bannon refused to answer any questions about his tenure, saying White House lawyers had instructed him to invoke an 'unusually broad' definition of executive privilege. The move prompted Committee Chairman Rep. Devin Nunes (R, CA-22) to issue a subpoena during the meeting to compel testimony. A House spokesman said they expect Bannon to return after discussing the issue with the White House. 

Powerful New 'Skygofree' Spyware Reported.
A powerful new Android-based program was was reported yesterday, with never-seen-before capabilities like the ability to record ambient audio (i.e. record your conversations), steal files, and connect infected devices to Wi-Fi networks controlled by criminals. The program, known as 'Skygofree', was reported by Kaspersky Lab and contains five separate ways to obtain root access - meaning the highest level of access on a device. The program marks itself as a 'protected' app, allowing it to operate even when the phone is off. Researchers believe the program has been under development since 2014 and potentially originates from a hacking team in Italy. The find comes just months after the revelation of a program known as Pegasus, which experts called the most sophisticated they had seen in the wild at the time. 
 

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> Jo Jo White, Hall of Fame NBA basketball player for the Boston Celtics, dies at 71 (More)
> Washington State QB Tyler Hilinski found dead in presumed suicide (More)
 

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> General Electric exploring breakup of business units following announcement of $6B insurance write-off (More)
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> Nestle sells US candy business to Ferrero for $2.8B in move to healthier products (More)
 

> Just days after Hawaii, Japan issues false alarm over North Korean missile attack (More) 
> Senate hits 50 votes on bill to restore Net Neutrality, would still need House approval (More) | 22 states file lawsuit to prevent rollback (More)
> Oil spill from crashed Iranian tanker in East China Sea could be worst in decades (More) | Satellite images of the burning ship (More) 

Check out Guidant's State of Small Businesses in 2017.

Craft brewers move aside, the top three selling beers in the US are light beers. 

This five-year-old dancer at the Cavs-Warriors game is the real MVP.

Fire sprinkler plus fire escape plus super cold equals 21-story icicle waterfall. 

This interactive table calculates how quickly you'll get frostbite. 

Beautiful new images of Jupiter are coming in from the Juno spacecraft's final days.

This art installation turns your selfie into a 3-D sculpture.

Mobile app usage continues to grow, but pace is slowing.

Clickbait: Family has sense of humor, horrifically photoshopped photoshoot goes viral.

Historybook: HBD Benjamin Franklin (1706); Cpt. James Cook is first person to reach Antarctic circle (1773); RIP Rutherford B. Hayes (1893); Al Capone born (1899); HBD Muhammad Ali (1942).

"DON'T COUNT THE DAYS - MAKE THE DAYS COUNT."
-Muhammad Ali
 

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