Ransomware attacks are affecting millions of organisations worldwide. What is the correct response when someone breaks into your organisation’s IT system, encrypts critically important data and demands a ransomware payment in exchange for an encryption key? Besides the obvious information security and business continuity concerns, there are other important aspects to consider, such as the…
Bulgaria’s never-ending election marathon
Update: On 6 June, after two months of negotiations, Bulgarian parliament approved a coalition government led by the prime minister Nikolai Denkov. The government was supported by the two largest parliamentary factions, the anti-communist and socially conservative GERB and the alliance of the right-of-centre We Continue the Change party (WCC) and the liberal Democratic Bulgaria (DB). Under the coalition agreement, Denkov, from the WCC-DB, will…
Sanctions: Trends and challenges in a tumultuous year
On 25 February 2023, the EU marked the one-year anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine by announcing its tenth package of sanctions against Russia. The new package added some 121 individuals and entities to the EU’s sanctions list, bringing the total under either an asset freeze or travel ban to 1,473 individuals and 205…
What does the biggest corporate scandal in years mean for India Inc?
Scandal engulfed one of India’s largest conglomerates at the end of January, when a report by a US-based short seller alleged massive corporate fraud. As well as sending shares in Adani Group companies tumbling and heightening fears of wider economic contagion, the report ignited a political scandal, with opposition parties highlighting Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s…
The Rise of Disinformation in OSINT
Due diligence investigators often rely on information available online to make an assessment of their target’s reputation. This means that the ability to distinguish between authentic and inauthentic sources is of critical importance. With the advancement of social media and AI-produced online content, and a fast-growing industry emerging around the creation and dissemination of disinformation,…
Russian parliamentary elections – a not so glorious victory
United Russia’s victory in the Russian parliamentary election in September 2021 is unlikely to mark a departure from the strained relationship of EU and US with Russia and to improve the prospects for doing international business in the country. Only the more robust investors are willing to accept the risks linked to operating in the…
The future of US sanctions on Iran
One of the top foreign policy priorities for the Biden administration is to strike a new nuclear deal with Iran. The administration got one step closer to reaching this goal at the beginning of April when indirect talks began between the two parties in Vienna to negotiate a return to the Obama-era deal (JCPOA, see…