Underwater search begins to locate MH370 black box

Perth, April 4 - The arduous hunt for the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 today entered a new phase with two hi-tech ships scouring a large area in the Indian Ocean for the black box of the jet before pings from it fall silent.

Two naval ships with locator capabilities are searching a 240 km underwater path, in the hope of recovering the plane's data recorder that could help investigators unravel the mystery of what happened on March 8, the day the Beijing-bound plane dropped off radar.

Up to 14 planes and nine ships are participating in today's search for the Boeing 777-200. The British Royal Navy survey ship HMS Echo and the Australian naval supply ship Ocean Shield began searching the ocean's depths today, said retired Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston, the head of the Perth-based Joint Agency Coordination Centre (JACC), said. The Ocean Shield is equipped with high-tech gear borrowed from the United States: the TPL-25, a giant underwater microphone that will listen for the pings from the flight data recorders, and the Bluefin-21, an underwater robot that can scour the ocean bed for signs of wreckage. The HMS Echo also has advanced sensor equipment.

But the area of the southern Indian Ocean where British and Australian naval ships are deploying sophisticated listening technology remains nothing more than a guess at where the plane may have hit the water, the CNN said.

Time is running out in the efforts to detect the pings as the batteries that power the recorders' beacons are expected to expire in the next four days.

Nearly four weeks have passed since the jetliner vanished with 239 persons, including five Indians on board. Investigators are still stumped by the case as there are no signs of debris. The area chosen for the search operation is based on the analysis of radar, satellite and other data that led the investigators to conclude that the flight ended in the southern Indian Ocean. "The area of highest probability as to where the aircraft might have entered the water is the area where the underwater search will commence," Houston said at a news conference.

"It's on the basis of data that arrived only recently, and it's the best data that is available." "On best advice, the locator beacon will last about a month before it ceases its transmissions, so we're now getting pretty close to the time when it might expire," he said. Until searchers can find a confirmed piece of debris from the plane, which would give them a clearer idea of where the main bits of wreckage might be located, there is no certainty of finding the black box.

Afghan cop kills AP photographer

Kabul, April 4 - A veteran Associated Press (AP) photographer was killed and an AP reporter was wounded today when an Afghan policeman opened fire while they were sitting in their car in eastern Afghanistan.

Anja Niedringhaus, 48, an internationally acclaimed German photographer, was killed instantly, according to an AP Television News freelancer who witnessed the shooting.

Kathy Gannon, the AP correspondent who for many years was the news organisation's Afghanistan bureau chief and more recently was a senior writer for the region, was shot twice and is receiving medical attention. She was described as being in stable condition and talking to medical personnel.

"Anja and Kathy together have spent years in Afghanistan covering the conflict and the people there. Anja was a vibrant, dynamic journalist well-loved for her insightful photographs, her warm heart and joy for life. We are heartbroken at her loss," said AP Executive Editor Kathleen Carroll, speaking in New York.

The two were travelling in a convoy of election workers delivering ballots from the centre of Khost city to the outskirts, in Tani district. The convoy was protected by the Afghan National Army and Afghan police. They were in their own car with a freelancer and a driver.

According to the freelancer, they had arrived in the heavily guarded district compound shortly before the incident.

As they were sitting in the car waiting for the convoy to move, a unit commander named Naqibullah walked up to the car, opened fire on them in the back seat with his AK-47. He then surrendered to the other police and was arrested.

Medical officials in Khost confirmed that Niedringhaus died. 

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NRI Sabha Canada: USA-based NRI alleges police inaction in cheating ...: Mohali, April 1 - A USA-based Non-Resident Indian (NRI) has questioned tall claims of the Punjab Police in disposing of complaints lodged ...

NRI Sabha Canada: USA-based NRI alleges police inaction in cheating ...

NRI Sabha Canada: USA-based NRI alleges police inaction in cheating ...: Mohali, April 1 - A USA-based Non-Resident Indian (NRI) has questioned tall claims of the Punjab Police in disposing of complaints lodged ...

Pune-based global hacker Amit Tiwari arrested

Saturday, Jan 25, 2014

Pune, - Amit Vikram Tiwari, an engineering dropout and global hacker, is in the CBI net. 
He is part of a global network of hackers and was arrested on Friday from Pune following a tip-off from the FBI. Tiwari was flown to New Delhi in the evening.

This is for the first time that a global network of cyber hackers has been traced to India. Investigating agencies of China, Romania and the United States collaborated with the CBI to pounce upon the 32-year-old professional hacker who, a source said, had compromised more than 1,000 internet accounts around the world.

The CBI claims that Tiwari’s hacking syndicate has been active in India since 2011, and that he has confessed to hacking 950 foreign email accounts besides 171 in India. Son of an Indian Army colonel, Tiwari was arrested from his house in Pune and taken to New Delhi on a transit-remand for further questioning.

The CBI tracked down Tiwari after the FBI passed on information on the global network of cyber hackers. Simultaneous raids were conducted in Mumbai and Ghaziabad.

This is not the first time Tiwari has been arrested. In 2003, he was arrested by the Mumbai police for defrauding a Mumbai-based credit card processing company of nearly Rs9 lakh when he was only 21 and pursuing a degree in engineering in Pune. At that time, he was operating a website designing services start-up www.mafiaz.com. During investigation, police found several fictitious names of clients and bank account numbers in his computer.

“Though he has claimed to have hacked into the email accounts of over 900 people globally, the kind of clientele whom he was serving is still to be established. From identify theft to corporate rivalry, he was serving all types of clients,” a CBI officer said. But he hacked only email accounts and not bank accounts. 

CBI claimed that he was operating through two websites — www.hirehacker.net and www.anonymity.com — and was charging between $250-500 for his service. He was paid via Western Union money transfer and Paypal. He used to send the money to his father and girlfriend.

“As part of an international law enforcement operation, the CBI has registered two cases against suspected operators of hacking websites. Similar operations are being conducted in Romania, China and the US. It is suspected that the number of email accounts hacked may be much larger once the data is collected and the accused are interrogated,” a CBI officer said.

Tiwari’s clientele included jilted lovers and corporate entities. After registering the cases, the CBI carried out searches in two locations in Mumbai and one each in Pune and Ghaziabad for violations of various sections of the IT Act and section 379 of the IPC.

Another CBI officer said: “Tiwari lives with his girlfriend, who is an aspirant model in the city. He leads a luxurious lifestyle and often change his homes. He is an expert in hacking bank details and skimming.”

Who is Amit Tiwari?
An engineering dropout from Pune and a global hacker, he is the son of an Indian Army colonel. The Mumbai police arrested him in 2003 for defrauding a Mumbai-based credit card processing company of nearly Rs9 lakh. 

What is hacking?
Hacking is explained in section 43 of the Information Technology Act, 2000. It includes unauthorised access, download, introducing virus, disrupting or damaging computers of others.

Sections applicable in hacking
Hacking is punishable under section 66 read with section 43 of the Information Technology Act, 2000.

Punishment/Fine 
The person can be punished with up to three years imprisonment or fine up to Rs5 lakh or both.

Who is his clientele?
From jilted lovers to corporate entities, he catered to everyone willing to pay his fees ($250-500). He operated through two websites — www.hirehacker.net and www.anonymity.com. He is accused of hacking into the email accounts of more than 900 people globally. He used to be paid via Western Union money transfer and Paypal.

His modus operandi
Customers who wanted unauthorised access to email accounts used to submit particulars of those accounts on the websites run by Tiwari. Upon receipt of the order as well as the email addresses, the website operators used to gain access to such email accounts and send a proof of such access to the customers. On receiving payment from customers, these website operators shared the password with them, according to the CBI.