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AWS Earnings Preview: Will AI Push AWS Across $100B Mark? – CRN

April 30, 2024 | Author: admin

Heres what to watch for during Amazons Q1 2024 earnings report tomorrow as AWS eyes a $100 billion run rate potentially driven by AI.

Amazon will report first quarter 2024 financial earnings results on Tuesday with all eyes on its $97 billion cloud business, Amazon Web Services, as the cloud giant eyes a record $100 billion annual run rate.

The Seattle-based worldwide cloud leader currently owns 32 percent market share as its seeking to secure its grasps on the red-hot AI and generative AI market with competitors Google and Microsoft nipping at its heels.

AWS earnings results for Q1 2024 will take place April 30 at 5:30 p.m. ET. Here are some major things channel partners, investors and customers should know ahead of Amazons earnings report tomorrow.

AWS generated sales of $24.2 billion during its most recent fourth quarter 2023. This represented a 13 percent year-over-year increase in AWS revenue compared to $21.4 billion in Q4 2022.

[Related: AWS Confirms Several Hundred Layoffs In Sales, Marketing, Global Services Teams]

Zacks consensus estimate is predicting that AWS captured $24.26 billion in revenue during the first quarter 2024.

If correct, this means AWS increased sales by nearly 14 percent year over year compared to the $21.35 billion AWS generated in Q1 2023.

Parent company Amazon has been pouring billions of dollars into expanding AWS cloud regions and availability zones to increase AWS customer base. These data center investments are being made both inside the U.S. and abroad, which are expected to have helped AWS with new customer dollars.

If AWS generated roughly $24.26 billion in revenue, as Zacks expects, the company will be on a roughly $97 billion run rate.

This would mean AWS will miss the $100 billion annual run rate threshold by about $3 billion.

However, if AWS beats Zacks estimates by about $700 million, and reports $25 billion in total Q1 2024 sales, it will become a $100 billion cloud company.

This month, Amazon said it was cutting hundreds of AWS employees in marketing, sales and global service organizations as part of a strategic shift.

Most of the layoffs were related to changes in AWS training and certification programs as well as sales operations. AWS is shifting toward more digital training and training programs run by external partners, with a new focus on self-serve training.

Within our training and certification organization, we have evolved our strategy to prioritize investing in self-serve digital training and delivering instructor-led training through AWS Training Partners, an AWS spokesperson told CRN.

AWS does not provide data about its global employee headcount, other than confirming it has tens of thousands of AWS employees.

Partners, investors and customers should take note if AWS talks about these layoffs and if executives say more AWS employee cuts are expected in 2024.

AWS, like fellow competitors Google and Microsoft, has invested millions into launching new AI and generative AI technologies.

The goal is to capture more customer mindshare with new AI features into AWS flagship cloud platform as well as new AI platforms such as Amazon Bedrock. AWS is also expanding partnerships with AI superstars like Nvidia and startups such as Anthropic.

It will be interesting to see if Amazon provides the public an AI sales or data figure in terms of how much revenue AI is driving for AWS. AI-related sales growth is key for AWS, Google and Microsoft to win over customers seeking to leverage the best AI for business transformation.

AWS does have the ability to throw down the gauntlet in terms of unveiling AI-related sales as both Google and Microsoft have shied away from providing figures.

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Google Cloud Posts 28 Percent Revenue Jump In Q1 2024 Thanks To AI, Says CEO – CRN

April 30, 2024 | Author: admin

The growth were seeing across [Google] Cloud is underpinned by the benefit AI provides for our customers, Ruth Porat, president, chief investment officer and CFO, said during Google parent Alphabets first-quarter 2024 earnings call Thursday.

Google parent Alphabet credited its strong first fiscal quarter of the year to solid Google Search and Google Cloud revenue.

For the first quarter of 2024 ended March 31, Google Cloud, the worlds third largest cloud computing company, generated $9.57 billion, up an impressive 28 percent from $7.45 billion a year ago.

Google CEO Sundar Pichai said that cloud business continues to grow as the company brings the best of Google artificial intelligence to enterprise customers around the world.

Our differentiation in cloud begins with our AI Hypercomputer, which provides efficient and cost-effective infrastructure to train models. Today, more than 60 percent of funded GenAI startups and nearly 90 percent of GenAI unicorns are Google Cloud customers, Pichai said.

As an example of the momentum the company is seeing in cloud thanks to AI, the Google One offering, which bundles cloud storage, AI capabilities and other Google features in one shareable plan, has crossed more than 100 million paid subscribers. In the first quarter, Google also recently introduced a premium AI plan called Gemini Advanced.

[Related: Google Cloud Applying AI To Our Whole Partner Incentive Portfolio: Google Exec]

Google during its first-quarter 2024 earnings call Thursday pointed to popular brands such as Beyer, Mercedes Benz and Walmart that are seeing generative AI success with Google Cloud, Pichai said.

The company over the past eight months has launched more than 1,000 new products and features as part of the Google Cloud Platform.

Google Cloud was not profitable until the company reported in first-quarter 2023 that the segment had generated $191 million in operating income. Prior to that, the company was investing billions each quarter to expand its global cloud infrastructure and services reach.

Google Cloud generates its sales from the Google Cloud Platform, platform services, infrastructure and collaboration tools such as Google Workspace. It takes in revenue primarily from consumption-based fees and subscriptions from Google Cloud Platform services, Workspace tools and other services.

Ruth Porat, the companys president, chief investment officer and CFO, said that Google Clouds performance during the first quarter reflects strong demand for Google Cloud Platform infrastructure and offerings, as well as for Googles Workspace productivity tools.

The growth were seeing across cloud is underpinned by the benefit AI provides for our customers. We continue to invest aggressively while remaining focused on profitable growth, she said.

Gemini, Googles AI-powered agent, is built into Google Workspace tools, including Gmail, Docs and Sheets. Google recently introduced Gemini for Meetings and Messaging and Gemini for Workspace security.

Customers are choosing Workspace because they have deep trust in our powerful security and privacy features. Our cloud business is now widely seen as the leader in cybersecurity, Pichai added.

Google announced earlier this month that it would be consolidating the teams that focus on building AI models across Google Research and Google DeepMind in a move the company said would further accelerate progress in AI.

Google Cloud, which delivered operating income of $900 million during the quarter, accounted for nearly 12 percent of Googles total revenue of $80.54 billion in first-quarter 2024.

Google bested Wall Street expectations of $78.59 billion during its first fiscal quarter of the year. The company also beat Wall Streets expectations for YouTube advertising revenue and cloud revenue.

Parent Alphabets stock climbed more than 12 percent in after-hours activity on news of the earnings results.

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Dropbox Adds Real-Time Co-Authoring to Microsoft Integrations – UC Today

April 30, 2024 | Author: admin

Dropbox has announced the release of new integrations with Microsoft, including real-time co-authoring of Microsoft files from within Dropbox.

According to the file sharing and cloud storage solution, Dropbox, teams can already access a beta version of Co-Authoring that will let them make live edits to Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files from the web and mobile.

As part of Dropboxs Spring Release, it is also launching an enhanced integration with Microsoft Teams that allows users to search, upload, share, and preview content in Dropbox from Microsoft 365.

On top of this, users will gain access to a plugin extension for Copilot for Microsoft 365 that can automatically answer questions and generate summaries.

Introducing the updates via its online blog, Dropbox explains how it used Virtual Firsts example to improve collaboration experiences: The reality of modern work is that teams are spread across multiple locations, time zones, and even companies.

The simplest tasks, like collaborating on content and responding to feedback, can be a massive headache. More than ever, our customers need technology that makes teamwork effortless.

Using the lessons weve learned from Virtual First, our playbook for distributed work, weve designed new tools that make it easier to find, organise, and share your contentall in one secure place.

Today, were announcing new top-requested features to give you the control, flexibility, and speed to do your best work, all from Dropbox.

These are all excellent feature upgrades that will no doubt add a major appeal when organisations that use Microsoft Teams are weighing up which cloud storage provider to side with.

The capabilities are unsurprisingly already available on Microsofts own OneDrive cloud storage solution.

Last month, Microsoft revealed for example that it will begin rolling out Copilot in OneDrive in late April 2024.

The new tool will allow users to quickly retrieve information from files in their OneDrive.

Available for work and school customers with a Copilot for Microsoft 365 license, Copilot in OneDrive will be able to accessible from OneDrive for web and file viewer in Microsoft Teams, SharePoint, and OneDrive.

As well as accessing files, OneDrive users will also be able to leverage the Copilot plugin to create tables, outlines, FAQs, enhance content in a document, presentation, or spreadsheet, summarise files, generate insights, and more.

Microsoft also added a collaborative content upgrade, whereby customers with a Copilot for Microsoft 365 license would also be able to include Copilot-generated summaries when sharing documents with their co-workers.

Although it is always going to be tough competing with Microsoft on integrations with its own products, Teams-based organisations may be drawn to Dropbox for other reasons.

In a recent Gartner comparison between Dropbox Business and OneDrive for Business, Dropbox scored higher on certain areas, such as user experience, ease of deployment, and content management. When it came to the overall rating, however, Gartner awarded OneDrive 4.5 out of five, just ahead of Dropboxs 4.4 out of five.

In December last year, Microsoft also launched the OneDrive for Teams App to replace the Teams Files app as a collaboration and productivity enhancement.

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Microsoft launches offline mode in OneDrive for web – XDA Developers

April 30, 2024 | Author: admin

Key Takeaways

Although OneDrive is a cloud storage solution, it also offers certain offline capabilities which are very useful when you don't have internet connectivity. In September 2023, Microsoft announced that it is working on an offline mode for the web version of its software too, and today, that day has finally arrived. The Redmond tech firm has revealed that it is now globally rolling out offline mode for work and school customers.

In a blog post, Microsoft has explained that offline mode brings several advantages. When you don't have an internet connection, you'll still be able to open and interact with certain views like Home, My files, Shared, Favorites, People, and Meeting. This includes viewing the metadata of your content, opening files marked as "offline" in their native apps and making edits, and synchronizing changes made to the My files view once you reconnect to the internet.

Interestingly, offline mode boasts certain benefits for users with internet connectivity too. You can mark files as "offline" for offline access, save local storage space by marking files as "online only", and also leverage a 3x performance improvement while utilizing OneDrive, thanks to the OneDrive Sync app. The first two of the aforementioned capabilities previously required using File Explorer (Windows) or Finder (Mac).

It's fairly easy to leverage trigger offline mode in OneDrive for web. Simply ensure that you are running the latest version of the OneDrive Sync app on your PC and then log in to OneDrive for web in a supported browser. This will kick-start the setup process for offline mode, and you can disable it later too.

That said, there are several limitations in the current implementation. Offline mode in OneDrive for web only works if you have less than 250,000 files in your repository, and it is mandatory to use a work or school account in a Chromium-based browser in Windows (Windows 10 or later) or macOS (macOS 12 Monterey or later). Furthermore, it will not work if you have added a shortcut to shared folders in OneDrive. Lastly, multiple views and capabilities won't function at all, including Copilot, Search, Recyle Bin, file deletion, managing access, file version history, and more. You can find out more details in the dedicated support article here.

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Alibaba’s Yitian 710 is the fastest Arm-based CPU for cloud servers, study claims – Tom’s Hardware

April 30, 2024 | Author: admin

A recent study published in the IEEE's Transactions on Cloud Computing journal has demonstrated that Alibaba Cloud's 128-core Yitian 710 processor, developed in 2021, is currently the most efficient Arm-based server processor for database tasks in large-scale cloud environments, reportsThe Register. The research conducted by Dumitrel Loghin from the National University of Singapore, showcases the Yitian 710 outperforming other Arm-based processors and even surpassing Intel's Xeon Platinum in some specific tests.

The research assessed a variety of Arm server CPUs and compared them against the Intel Xeon Platinum 8488C, which was launched in the first quarter of 2023. This comparative analysis was performed across eight different cloud platforms to determine which CPU handles database-related tasks most effectively. Among the Arm processors evaluated Amazon's 64-coreGraviton 2/3, Huawei's 60-core Kunpeng 920, and Ampere's Altra 80-core processor the Yitian 710 emerged as a standout performer, especially noteworthy given its newer technological underpinnings. As for workloads, they included Dhrystone and Whetstone benchmarks, measuring the number of kernel system calls and execl calls each system made, testing file copy speeds, assessing the overall UnixBench score, and conducting RSA 2048 signing and verification tasks.

Alibaba's Yitian 710 was ahead of its rivals in synthetic Dhrystone and Whetstone benchmarks and significantly challenged Intel's Xeon 8488C, which demonstrates its huge potential. The Yitian 710 also outperformed its competitors in File Copy, UnixBench, and RSA 2048 signing and verification tests.

Despite the strengths of the Yitian 710, AWS's Graviton 3 surpassed it in the Redis benchmark. However, the Yitian 710 maintained its advantage in handling memcached throughput and in two out of three RocksDB throughput tasks, the report says.

The study also highlighted the Yitian 710's technological advantages, such as its use of the latest Arm instruction set architecture (ISA) and DDR5 SDRAM in 2021, which contributed significantly to its high performance. On the other hand, Huawei's cloud offers a unique feature where two Kunpeng 920 CPUs can run in a Non-Uniform Memory Access (NUMA) topology, a capability unmatched by any other cloud provider's Arm servers.

Cost efficiency was another focal point of the research. Although Arm servers require more system calls than their Intel counterparts (which is potentially inefficient), they still offer better value in some scenarios. This is particularly relevant as cloud providers continue to optimize for cost-effectiveness without compromising The study suggests that with incremental improvements, such as slight increases in clock speeds and optimizations in Linux kernel system calls, Arm servers like the Yitian 710 could become even more competitive. The research recommends leveraging Arm-specific features like Scalable Vector Extensions to boost performance in respective workloads, potentially positioning Arm servers as a viable alternative to more established AMD EPYC and Intel Xeon servers in cloud computing scenarios.

Join the experts who read Tom's Hardware for the inside track on enthusiast PC tech news and have for over 25 years. We'll send breaking news and in-depth reviews of CPUs, GPUs, AI, maker hardware and more straight to your inbox.

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Unspoken Challenges of Cloud Security in Serverless Environments – TechGraph

April 30, 2024 | Author: admin

Intodaystechnologically advanced world, serverless computing has emerged as a revolution, offering businesses an attractive way to deploy code into production without the intricacies of managing the underlying servers.

However, this shift has also brought many subtle security concerns that often go unspoken. Efficient management of these challenges is essential to safeguard applications and maintain operational integrity.Hereshow to address thekeysecurity issues inherent in serverless architectures.

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Serverless platforms like AWS Lambda and Azure Functions execute code in response to events without traditional server management.While this setup offers convenience,itsvital to manage function permissions carefully.

Assigning overly broad permissions can lead to security vulnerabilities, such as unauthorized datainjectionif a function has unnecessary database write access.To prevent such risks,itsessential to adhere to the principle of least privilegefunctions should only have the permissions necessary for their specific tasks. Regular audits help maintain minimal permissions, enhancing security.

To mitigate potential security vulnerabilities in serverless environments,itsessentialto thoroughly validate and sanitize all incoming event data. Ensuring that functionsare designedto handle unexpected or malicious inputs can significantly enhance security. Implementing rate limiting also plays a crucial role, as it helps prevent abuse by controlling the frequency of triggered events.

Serverless functions rely heavily on third-party libraries, which can introduce vulnerabilities. To safeguard against these risks, it is criticalto regularly update and patch dependencies. Employ vulnerability scanning tools to detect and address security flaws efficiently.Additionally, incorporating a software composition analysis tooloffers a thorough assessment ofyourapplicationsdependencies, ensuring all components are secure and current.This strategy is essential for maintaining robust security in serverless environments.

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The transient nature of serverless functions, which appear and disappear as needed, complicates traditional security monitoring.This lack of persistent infrastructure can obscure visibility,makingthreat detection and responsechallenging.

To overcome this,itscrucial to utilizemonitoring solutionstailored specificallyfor serverless architectures.These tools provide real-time logging, monitoring, and alerting capabilities, allowing for continuous oversight of the security posture. By adopting such specialized tools, organizations can ensure that they remain alert to security threats in a dynamically changing serverless landscape.

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Serverless architectures handle each function call independently without sharing state, complicating session and authentication management and increasing the risk of issues like token theft.

To address these challenges, it is essential to secure session data using HTTPS and secure cookie settings to protect session data. Implement short-lived JWTs for authentication to minimize vulnerability. For effective session management, use scalable storage solutions like Redis or DynamoDB, which support quick state checks and enhance overall security.

Serverless computing offers unmatched agility and scalability, yet it comes withits own set ofunique security challenges. To truly capitalize on serverless technologies while keeping your operations secure,itsvital to understand and actively address these risks. In the world of cybersecurity, staying informed and alert is essential. By prioritizing security in every architectural decision, you can ensure that your defenses are robust and your business remains protected.

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Amazon cloud computing unit plans to invest $11 billion to build data center in northern Indiana Metro US – Metro US

April 30, 2024 | Author: admin

FILE An Amazon logo appears on an Amazon delivery van in Boston, Oct. 1, 2020. Amazons cloud computing unit Amazon Web Services plans to invest $11 billion to build a data center in northern Indiana that will create at least 1,000 new jobs. Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb announced the planned project Thursday, April 25, 2024 calling the data center planned near the town of New Carlisle, about 15 miles west of South Bend, the largest capital investment announcement in Indianas history. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)

NEW CARLISLE, Ind. (AP) Amazon s cloud computing unit Amazon Web Services plans to invest $11 billion to build a data center in northern Indiana that will create at least 1,000 new jobs, state and company officials announced Thursday.

Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb called the project planned near the town of New Carlisle, about 15 miles (24 kilometers) west of South Bend, the largest capital investment announcement in Indianas history.

This significant investment solidifies Indianas leadership position in the economy of the future, and will undoubtedly have a positive ripple effect on the town of New Carlisle, the north central region and the state of Indiana for years to come, Holcomb said in a news release.

The announcement from Holcombs office and AWS did not include a timeline for the data center campus in northern Indianas St. Joseph County, which abuts the Michigan state line.

But Carl Baxmeyer, president of the St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners, said in the news release that it would be built over the next decade at the Indiana Enterprise Center, located just east of New Carlisle, and will be a major employment center for all of northern Indiana.

The AWS data center would contain computer servers, data storage drives, networking equipment, and other forms of technology infrastructure used to power cloud computing capabilities, and generative artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, according to the news release.

Roger Wehner, AWS director of economic development, said the Indiana data center will create numerous well-paying job opportunities and tap into the states burgeoning tech sector, while contributing significantly to the states growing economy.

Based on the company s planned investment, the Indiana Economic Development Corp. has committed to providing data center sales tax exemptions for eligible capital investments over a 50-year term, the release states.

The IEDC has also committed to a variety of performance-based tax credits to support the AWS data center plans, including up to $18.3 million in headcount-based tax credits, up to $55 million in Hoosier Business Investment tax credits, and up to $20 million in redevelopment tax credits, the release states.

AWS will provide up to $7 million to support road infrastructure improvements along State Road 2, surrounding the companys planned data center, according to the release.

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Cryptocurrency: 3 Coins To Buy Under $0.5 in May 2024 – Watcher Guru

April 30, 2024 | Author: admin

The cryptocurrency market experienced the Bitcoin halving event last weekwherethe supply of BTC was cutin half. The development makes Bitcoin scarcely available in the marketat a timewhen theres ahugedemand for the cryptocurrency. As the demand for the cryptocurrency is high, the move could make its price sustainably scale up in the indices in May 2024.

Also Read: Cardano: How High Can ADA Trade This May?

The entry of global institutional investors in the cryptocurrency market through Spot Bitcoin ETFs can make BTC reach new heights. If Bitcoin climbsupthe charts, it will also push other leading cryptocurrencies to rally and move in tandem with its price rise.In thisarticle, wewill highlight the top 3 coins to buy in May 2024.

Also Read: Shiba Inu Team Estimates When SHIB Could Hit $0.01

1. VeChain (VET)

VeChain (VET) was among the top-performing assets in the cryptocurrency market in Q1 of 2024. VET is currently trading around the $0.038 mark and is mostly moving sideways in the indices.It spiked nearly 70% between JanuarytoMarchridingthe hype of the Bitcoin halving event.

However, VET is down in April this month and barelymoved upin the charts in the last 30 days. Now that the BTC halving event is over, aspike in BTCs pricecould catapult VET in May 2024. VET has more chances to rise in May 2024 as VeChain mostly moves in tandem with Bitcoin.

Also Read: Settlement Woes Weigh On XRP: Will Ripple Hit $1 Sooner Than Later?

2. Cardano (ADA)

Leading altcoin Cardanos native token ADA is hovering around the $0.45 price range. ADA is receiving a large trading volumetouching$282 million this week. Cardanos ADA is consolidating in priceanda leg-up from here could push the cryptocurrency to climb above the $0.50 mark in May 2024.

3. Dogecoin (DOGE)

Billionaire Elon Musk could soon integrate Dogecoin as an official form of payment for customers to buy Tesla cars. If the cryptocurrency markets rally, Dogecoin is the first to spike double digits and deliver profits to investors. Dogecoin is mostly the sleeping giant of the cryptocurrency market and rallies when the market turns green.

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Top GOP Congressman Backs Passing Marijuana Banking Bill Paired With Cryptocurrency Reform, Saying ‘Our … – Marijuana Moment

April 30, 2024 | Author: admin

The Republican vice chair of the House Financial Services Committee says he would support a hybrid marijuana banking and cryptocurrency regulation bill, saying our country will benefit if both reforms are enacted.

In an interview with Bloomberg, Rep. French Hill (R-AR) was asked to weigh in on ongoing talks about merging the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act and the cryptocurrency legislation.

I would vote for if it were coupled. I have supported the SAFE Banking Act for nine years in Congress now, which would allow cannabis dealers in states where its legal to have access to the banking system, Hill, whos twice voted for the cannabis legislation on the House floor, said. I think its a lot easier to catch bad actors and illegal activity if those companies are participating in the banking system.

If someones trying to take advantage of legal cannabis in an illegal way, its a lot better to have those companies participating in the banking system, he said, adding that he agrees with recent remarks from the committees ranking member, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), that legislation is close to being finalized.

Hill was also asked about the prospect of including the reforms in a must-pass Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) billa possibility that a top marijuana industry group said is no longer being considered in an internal message to stakeholders last week.

I think thats a call that leadership has to make, the congressman said. I think there are other ways that we can do it during the course of the year. But if we get an agreement, then House and Senate leadership can work on the best floor strategy for moving the legislation forward.

Bottom line is weve made a lot of progress in the last year, he said. Our country will benefit if we get both these bills passed.

Meanwhile, last week Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY)once againincluded the bipartisan marijuana banking bill in a list of legislative prioritieshe hopes to advance this year.

Since the Senate recently approved must-pass appropriations legislation and foreign aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, there are heightened expectations that floor action could be on the horizon.

Adding to those expectations is the recent introduction of a bill toincentivize expungements for past cannabis offenses at the state, local and tribal levels. Schumer has made clear he intends to attach that measure to the banking legislation on the floor.

Schumer also recently asked people toshow their support for the SAFER Banking Act by signing a petitionas he steps up his push for the legislation. A poll released last month by the American Bankers Association (ABA) shows that roughly three out of five Americanssupport allowing marijuana industry access to the banking system.

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) said that thatif Republicans want to keep the House, they should pass the marijuana banking bill, arguing that there are votes to approve it.

The congresswoman also told the majority leader to stop holding the SAFER Banking Act as a campaign carrot in a social media post on Monday.

Schumer told Marijuana Moment last month thatthe bill remains a very high priority for the Senate, and members are having very productive bicameral talks to reach a final agreement.

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown (D-OH) said last month thatpassing the SAFER Banking Act off the floor is a high priority.However, he also recently said in a separate interview thatadvancing the legislation is complicated by current House dynamics.

House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) separately said during a recent American Bankers Association (ABA) summit that he wants to see the SAFER Banking Act move.

He said that, for whatever reason, the federal government has been slow to act on the incremental reform that he supports even though he doesnt identify as a marijuana guy.

One key factor thats kept the bill from the Senate floor is disagreement over mostly non-cannabis provisions dealing with broader banking regulations, primarily those contained in Section 10 of the legislation.

Marijuana Moment is tracking more than 1,400 cannabis, psychedelics and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they dont miss any developments. Learn more about our marijuana bill tracker and become a supporter on Patreon to get access.

Bicameral negotiations have been ongoing, however, and recent reporting suggests that a final deal could be just over the horizon.

The Democratic Senate sponsor of the SAFER Banking Act, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), told Marijuana Moment last month that the legislation is gaining momentum as lawmakers work to bring it to the floor and pass it this year.

Rep. Earl Blumenauer, founding co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, told Marijuana Moment last week that,every day were closer on SAFE Banking,and negotiations are ongoing in the House and Senate, and we are, in fact, making progress.

At the close of the first half of the 118th Congress in December, Schumer said in a floor speech that lawmakers would hit the ground running in 2024, aiming tobuild on bipartisan progress on several key issues, including marijuana banking reformthough he noted it wont be easy.

New Mexico Governor Offended By Top Biden Officials Reaction To Marijuana Business Seizure Concerns, Leaked Audio Shows

Marijuana Moment is made possible with support from readers. If you rely on our cannabis advocacy journalism to stay informed, please consider a monthly Patreon pledge.

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FBI Norfolk warns of growing dilemma of cryptocurrency scams in Hampton Roads – 13newsnow.com WVEC

April 30, 2024 | Author: admin

Forensic accountants with the Norfolk field office of the FBI want to get ahead of a crypto-based trend they're seeing greatly impact people's finances.

CHESAPEAKE, Va. Daniel Booth calls it old tricks with a new look.

Everything seems to be moving in that direction, that these are old crimes facilitated by cryptocurrency," Booth says.

Booth, a forensic accountant with the Norfolk Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation shared that cryptocurrency scams are becoming a more prevalent issue across FBI field offices and that the Hampton Roads region of Virginia is no stranger to this trend.

The scams executed distinctly involve a combination of the finances of a person (or business), and its use toward trading exclusively digital forms of cryptocurrency, which have garnered more attention and public interest in recent years.

Booth warns of three of the most common cryptocurrency scams:

Based on relatively traditional forms of financial fraud, the scammers in these instances breach a businesses' security platforms and take hold of their systems in exchange for repayment. Only now, these payments can instead be used toward cryptocurrency.

Theyll sell you a decryption key. But depending on the size of your business, you may be a hospital or law firm, they may get you for millions of dollars. You have the options of doing nothing and trying to restore everything or pay that ransom, and that ransom is in cryptocurrency," Booth says.

A similar cryptocurrency scam attacks individuals more so than businesses or organizations.

"A lot of times, if you're on a website there is a pop-up or it looks like an anti-virus software. Really you don't, or it's a website with an anti-virus warning, and it encourages you to dial a number, and it puts you in touch with a customer service representative. From there they encourage you to install certain software that gives them access to your computer because they explain they'll fix your computer. When you give them the remote access they'll scour that data for anything of value, for financial records to size you up, or they're looking for identifying documents. But eventually what it boils down to is: they've fixed the problem, they charge you for it but they "accidentally" charged you too much.

This form, Booth says, is prevalent and a frequent form of crypto scam for individuals in Hampton Roads.

In these scenarios, victims are enticed to invest their own money through a site that's created to look like a legitimate trading website. Except, the site is disconnected from any trading platform and is solely a platform for scammers to keep victims contributing money, thinking they're making financial gains on crypto-style investments.

Whats key about these scams, they dont ask for money. Theyre never going to say 'give me money.' Instead, they recommend a very legitimate website or app and theyre going to say here is where I make my trades and where I make my money," Booth says.

Lets say it starts as a $1,000 investment, it looks legit. Like you can execute trades on it and it gives you feedback as if the trade occurred. Through the 'mentor' coaching you may make 10,000 dollars on a single trade," Booth said, adding that people can lose entire life savings in this method if they're not careful.

Im not sure on the exact numbers or if we [FBI] can even share the exact numbers, but Ive run across several instances in this area that people are really affected by this.

The red flags raised by Booth come one day after a public service announcement from the FBI, issuing a warning for cryptocurrency-related scams.

Those who believe they've fallen victim in these cases can submit their cases to the Internet Crime Complaint Center.

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