A visual representation of bitcoin on Dec. 7, 2017, in London. (Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)
In this occasional series, The Washington Post brings you up to speed on some of the biggest stories of the week. This week: The U.S. declares North Korea carried out massive WannaCry cyberattack.
The biggest story: The dark side of digital currencies
The Trump administration publicly acknowledged that North Korea was behind WannaCry, the cryptocurrency-linked computer worm that affected more than 230,000 computers in over 150 countries earlier this year. Drawing a connection between North Korea’s alleged cyber activities and its development of nuclear weapons, a White House official said: “I think, at this point, North Korea has demonstrated that they want to hold the entire world at risk, whether it be through its nuclear program or cyberattacks.”
Here's how the attack unfolded
WannaCry locked down victims' computers and refused to grant them access to their files unless they agreed to pay at least $300 in bitcoin, a digital currency.
You can watch the details in our video:
Venezuela wants to circumvent sanctions with its own digital currency
The government of economically and politically troubled Venezuela recently announced plans to launch its own digital currency. The hope is that the new currency can bypass international sanctions and serve as an alternative to the country’s now-worthless bolívar or the U.S. dollar.
Five other important stories
1. U.S. sanctions against Russia are also hurting Germany — a lot
A view of the Kremlin, the History Museum and the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow on July 31. (Mladen Antonov/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images)Elsewhere, pressure to bypass sanctions on Russia is coming not only from Moscow but also from the nations behind the measures. A new study by European economists shows that the West is paying a hefty price for its sanctions due to retaliatory measures, the inaccessibility of loans and a more general perception of a loss of trust. Germany has shouldered a particularly heavy economic burden, and demands are mounting there to repair relations with Russia.
2. As Moscow goes high-tech, so does its surveillance system
Moscow is plowing billions of dollars into reinventing itself as a modern, tech-friendly European city, and its system of remote surveillance is also ballooning.
A situation room at the Moscow Traffic Management Center. (Sergei Fadeichev/TASS/Getty Images)
Over the past six years, the city has contracted with telecommunications operators to install more than 130,000 cameras, many of them boasting high resolution, zoom and swivel functions, and an uplink to a centralized database accessed by 16,000 municipal, regional and federal officials, including 6,000 law enforcement officers.
Andrew Roth took a closer look.
3. How debt-ridden refugees are being forced to return to a war zone
(Adriane Ohanesian for The Washington Post)
When the United Nations slashed aid to Somali refugees, many were forced to borrow money for food. They saw only one option for paying it back: traveling back to their home country and risking their lives. Their return was a sign of how a strained international aid system has broken down amid the biggest global refugee crisis since World War II, as Kevin Sieff writes.
4. Who is Cyril Ramaphosa, South Africa’s probable next president?
On Monday, delegates from South Africa's ruling African National Congress party elected him as their new president, paving the way for Ramaphosa to become the country's next leader. For decades, the ANC has failed to deliver dependable public services, and the employment growth rate is slow even by sub-Saharan Africa's standards. Jacob Zuma, whom Ramaphosa will replace, has been accused of egregious corruption and relying politically on an economy-stifling system of patronage to curry votes. Wealth is still concentrated in the hands of a small white minority and a class of black business elites.
Max Bearak explains how Ramaphosa wants to change that, even though he has a personal net worth of nearly half a billion dollars.
Cyril Ramaphosa at the ANC national conference on Dec. 18, 2017. (Siphiwe Sibeko/Reuters)5. The Oxford Dictionaries’ word of the year is a word nobody actually uses
The Oxford Dictionaries Word of the Year 2017 was revealed, and the winner is ... “youthquake.”
Confused? You may not be the only one.
The word is defined as meaning “a significant cultural, political, or social change arising from the actions or influence of young people.” It represents the awakening of millennials striving for change during a turbulent 12 months across the world. Despite having deep political and cultural roots in 2017, the winning word was met with a wave of skepticism on social media.
Read the full story by Jennifer Hassan.
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