SpaceX removed a crucial piece of equipment at its Florida launch site, while the Federal Aviation Administration briefly closed the El Paso International Airport due to a military operation, and ICE's expansion plans are facing scrutiny, according to recent reports. These events, along with the resurgence of a dangerous infostealer, highlight a busy week of developments across technology, law enforcement, and national security.
At NASA's Kennedy Space Center, SpaceX removed the Crew Access Arm from Launch Complex 39A, the site used for launching Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets, according to Ars Technica. The removal of this arm, which allowed astronauts to board spacecraft, is part of ongoing modifications. The site, originally built for the Saturn V rockets and later used for the Space Shuttle program, is now a key launch point for SpaceX.
Meanwhile, the El Paso International Airport in Texas experienced a temporary closure of its airspace due to a military operation. The FAA closed airspace up to 18,000 feet above the airport on Tuesday night, reopening it less than 10 hours later, according to Ars Technica. US Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy explained the closure was in response to a "cartel drone incursion."
In the realm of cybersecurity, the Lumma Stealer, an infostealer that infected nearly 395,000 Windows computers last year, has resurfaced. According to Ars Technica, researchers reported that Lumma is back with hard-to-detect attacks that pilfer credentials and sensitive files. The malware, which first appeared in Russian-speaking cybercrime forums in 2022, uses a cloud-based malware-as-a-service model to distribute itself.
The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is also making headlines. WIRED reported that ICE's expansion plans are pushing the US court system in Minnesota to its breaking point. Since Operation Metro Surge began in December, federal immigration agents have arrested approximately 4,000 people, leading to a surge of cases filed in the US district court in Minnesota. Attorneys filed nearly as many habeas corpus petitions in Minnesota alone as were filed across the entire US in a year, according to WIRED's review of court records.
Furthermore, WIRED published details of ICE’s planned expansion into more than 150 office spaces across the United States, including 54 specific addresses. The agency plans to occupy existing government spaces and share spaces with medical offices and small businesses, according to the report.
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