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NonePolice arrest fake officer for defrauding POS operators in OgunBy KELVIN CHAN LONDON (AP) — After a sprawling hacking campaign exposed the communications of an unknown number of Americans, U.S. cybersecurity officials are advising people to use encryption in their communications. To safeguard against the risks highlighted by the campaign, which originated in China, federal cybersecurity authorities released an extensive list of security recommendations for U.S. telecom companies — such as Verizon and AT&T — that were targeted. The advice includes one tip we can all put into practice with our phones: “Ensure that traffic is end-to-end encrypted to the maximum extent possible.” End-to-end encryption, also known as E2EE, means that messages are scrambled so that only the sender and recipient can see them. If anyone else intercepts the message, all they will see is a garble that can’t be unscrambled without the key. Law enforcement officials had until now resisted this type of encryption because it means the technology companies themselves won’t be able to look at the messages, nor respond to law enforcement requests to turn the data over. Here’s a look at various ways ordinary consumers can use end-to-end encryption: Texting Officials said the hackers targeted the metadata of a large number of customers, including information on the dates, times and recipients of calls and texts. They also managed to see the content from texts from a much smaller number of victims. If you’re an iPhone user, information in text messages that you send to someone else who also has an iPhone will be encrypted end-to-end. Just look for the blue text bubbles, which indicate that they are encrypted iMessages. The same goes for Android users sending texts through Google Messages. There will be a lock next to the timestamp on each message to indicate the encryption is on. But there’s a weakness. When iPhone and Android users text each other, the messages are encrypted only using Rich Communication Services, an industry standard for instant messaging that replaces the older SMS and MMS standards. Apple has noted that RCS messages “aren’t end-to-end encrypted, which means they’re not protected from a third party reading them while they’re sent between devices.” Samsung, which sells Android smartphones, has also hinted at the issue in a footnote at the bottom of a press release last month on RCS, saying, “Encryption only available for Android to Android communication.” Chat apps To avoid getting caught out when trading texts, experts recommend using encrypted messaging apps. Privacy advocates are big fans of Signal, which applies end-to-end encryption on all messages and voice calls. The independent nonprofit group behind the app promises never to sell, rent, or lease customer data and has made its source code publicly available so that it can be audited by anyone to examine it “for security and correctness.” Signal’s encryption protocol is so reputable that it has been integrated into rival WhatsApp , so users will enjoy the same level of security protection as Signal, which has a much smaller user base. End-to-end encryption is also the default mode for Facebook Messenger , which like WhatsApp is owned by Meta Platforms. What about Telegram? Telegram is an app that can be used for one-on-one conversations, group chats and broadcast “channels” but contrary to popular perception, it doesn’t turn on end-to-end encryption by default. Users have to switch on the option. And it doesn’t work with group chats. Cybersecurity experts have warned people against using Telegram for private communications and pointed out that only its opt-in ‘secret chat’ feature is encrypted from end-to-end. The app also has a reputation for being a haven for scammers and criminal activity, highlighted by founder and CEO Pavel Durov’s arrest in France . Making calls Instead of using your phone to make calls through a wireless cellular network, you can make voice calls with Signal and WhatsApp. Both apps encrypt calls with the same technology that they use to encrypt messages. There are other options. If you have an iPhone you can use Facetime for calls, while Android owners can use the Google Fi service, which are both end-to-end encrypted. The only catch with all these options is that, as with using the chat services to send messages, the person on the other end will also have to have the app installed. WhatsApp and Signal users can customize their privacy preferences in the settings, including hiding IP address during calls to prevent your general location from being guessed. Is there a tech topic that you think needs explaining? Write to us at onetechtip@ap.org with your suggestions for future editions of One Tech Tip.
By BILL BARROW, Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — Jimmy Carter, the peanut farmer who won the presidency in the wake of the Watergate scandal and Vietnam War, endured humbling defeat after one tumultuous term and then redefined life after the White House as a global humanitarian, has died. He was 100 years old. The longest-lived American president died on Sunday, more than a year after entering hospice care , at his home in the small town of Plains, Georgia, where he and his wife, Rosalynn, who died at 96 in November 2023 , spent most of their lives, The Carter Center said. Related Articles Businessman, Navy officer, evangelist, politician, negotiator, author, woodworker, citizen of the world — Carter forged a path that still challenges political assumptions and stands out among the 45 men who reached the nation’s highest office. The 39th president leveraged his ambition with a keen intellect, deep religious faith and prodigious work ethic, conducting diplomatic missions into his 80s and building houses for the poor well into his 90s. “My faith demands — this is not optional — my faith demands that I do whatever I can, wherever I am, whenever I can, for as long as I can, with whatever I have to try to make a difference,” Carter once said. A moderate Democrat, Carter entered the 1976 presidential race as a little-known Georgia governor with a broad smile, outspoken Baptist mores and technocratic plans reflecting his education as an engineer. His no-frills campaign depended on public financing, and his promise not to deceive the American people resonated after Richard Nixon’s disgrace and U.S. defeat in southeast Asia. “If I ever lie to you, if I ever make a misleading statement, don’t vote for me. I would not deserve to be your president,” Carter repeated before narrowly beating Republican incumbent Gerald Ford, who had lost popularity pardoning Nixon. Carter governed amid Cold War pressures, turbulent oil markets and social upheaval over racism, women’s rights and America’s global role. His most acclaimed achievement in office was a Mideast peace deal that he brokered by keeping Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin at the bargaining table for 13 days in 1978. That Camp David experience inspired the post-presidential center where Carter would establish so much of his legacy. Yet Carter’s electoral coalition splintered under double-digit inflation, gasoline lines and the 444-day hostage crisis in Iran. His bleakest hour came when eight Americans died in a failed hostage rescue in April 1980, helping to ensure his landslide defeat to Republican Ronald Reagan. Carter acknowledged in his 2020 “White House Diary” that he could be “micromanaging” and “excessively autocratic,” complicating dealings with Congress and the federal bureaucracy. He also turned a cold shoulder to Washington’s news media and lobbyists, not fully appreciating their influence on his political fortunes. “It didn’t take us long to realize that the underestimation existed, but by that time we were not able to repair the mistake,” Carter told historians in 1982, suggesting that he had “an inherent incompatibility” with Washington insiders. Carter insisted his overall approach was sound and that he achieved his primary objectives — to “protect our nation’s security and interests peacefully” and “enhance human rights here and abroad” — even if he fell spectacularly short of a second term. Ignominious defeat, though, allowed for renewal. The Carters founded The Carter Center in 1982 as a first-of-its-kind base of operations, asserting themselves as international peacemakers and champions of democracy, public health and human rights. “I was not interested in just building a museum or storing my White House records and memorabilia,” Carter wrote in a memoir published after his 90th birthday. “I wanted a place where we could work.” That work included easing nuclear tensions in North and South Korea, helping to avert a U.S. invasion of Haiti and negotiating cease-fires in Bosnia and Sudan. By 2022, The Carter Center had declared at least 113 elections in Latin America, Asia and Africa to be free or fraudulent. Recently, the center began monitoring U.S. elections as well. Carter’s stubborn self-assuredness and even self-righteousness proved effective once he was unencumbered by the Washington order, sometimes to the point of frustrating his successors . He went “where others are not treading,” he said, to places like Ethiopia, Liberia and North Korea, where he secured the release of an American who had wandered across the border in 2010. “I can say what I like. I can meet whom I want. I can take on projects that please me and reject the ones that don’t,” Carter said. He announced an arms-reduction-for-aid deal with North Korea without clearing the details with Bill Clinton’s White House. He openly criticized President George W. Bush for the 2003 invasion of Iraq. He also criticized America’s approach to Israel with his 2006 book “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid.” And he repeatedly countered U.S. administrations by insisting North Korea should be included in international affairs, a position that most aligned Carter with Republican President Donald Trump. Among the center’s many public health initiatives, Carter vowed to eradicate the guinea worm parasite during his lifetime, and nearly achieved it: Cases dropped from millions in the 1980s to nearly a handful. With hardhats and hammers, the Carters also built homes with Habitat for Humanity. The Nobel committee’s 2002 Peace Prize cites his “untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.” Carter should have won it alongside Sadat and Begin in 1978, the chairman added. Carter accepted the recognition saying there was more work to be done. “The world is now, in many ways, a more dangerous place,” he said. “The greater ease of travel and communication has not been matched by equal understanding and mutual respect.” Carter’s globetrotting took him to remote villages where he met little “Jimmy Carters,” so named by admiring parents. But he spent most of his days in the same one-story Plains house — expanded and guarded by Secret Service agents — where they lived before he became governor. He regularly taught Sunday School lessons at Maranatha Baptist Church until his mobility declined and the coronavirus pandemic raged. Those sessions drew visitors from around the world to the small sanctuary where Carter will receive his final send-off after a state funeral at Washington’s National Cathedral. The common assessment that he was a better ex-president than president rankled Carter and his allies. His prolific post-presidency gave him a brand above politics, particularly for Americans too young to witness him in office. But Carter also lived long enough to see biographers and historians reassess his White House years more generously. His record includes the deregulation of key industries, reduction of U.S. dependence on foreign oil, cautious management of the national debt and notable legislation on the environment, education and mental health. He focused on human rights in foreign policy, pressuring dictators to release thousands of political prisoners . He acknowledged America’s historical imperialism, pardoned Vietnam War draft evaders and relinquished control of the Panama Canal. He normalized relations with China. “I am not nominating Jimmy Carter for a place on Mount Rushmore,” Stuart Eizenstat, Carter’s domestic policy director, wrote in a 2018 book. “He was not a great president” but also not the “hapless and weak” caricature voters rejected in 1980, Eizenstat said. Rather, Carter was “good and productive” and “delivered results, many of which were realized only after he left office.” Madeleine Albright, a national security staffer for Carter and Clinton’s secretary of state, wrote in Eizenstat’s forward that Carter was “consequential and successful” and expressed hope that “perceptions will continue to evolve” about his presidency. “Our country was lucky to have him as our leader,” said Albright, who died in 2022. Jonathan Alter, who penned a comprehensive Carter biography published in 2020, said in an interview that Carter should be remembered for “an epic American life” spanning from a humble start in a home with no electricity or indoor plumbing through decades on the world stage across two centuries. “He will likely go down as one of the most misunderstood and underestimated figures in American history,” Alter told The Associated Press. James Earl Carter Jr. was born Oct. 1, 1924, in Plains and spent his early years in nearby Archery. His family was a minority in the mostly Black community, decades before the civil rights movement played out at the dawn of Carter’s political career. Carter, who campaigned as a moderate on race relations but governed more progressively, talked often of the influence of his Black caregivers and playmates but also noted his advantages: His land-owning father sat atop Archery’s tenant-farming system and owned a main street grocery. His mother, Lillian , would become a staple of his political campaigns. Seeking to broaden his world beyond Plains and its population of fewer than 1,000 — then and now — Carter won an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy, graduating in 1946. That same year he married Rosalynn Smith, another Plains native, a decision he considered more important than any he made as head of state. She shared his desire to see the world, sacrificing college to support his Navy career. Carter climbed in rank to lieutenant, but then his father was diagnosed with cancer, so the submarine officer set aside his ambitions of admiralty and moved the family back to Plains. His decision angered Rosalynn, even as she dived into the peanut business alongside her husband. Carter again failed to talk with his wife before his first run for office — he later called it “inconceivable” not to have consulted her on such major life decisions — but this time, she was on board. “My wife is much more political,” Carter told the AP in 2021. He won a state Senate seat in 1962 but wasn’t long for the General Assembly and its back-slapping, deal-cutting ways. He ran for governor in 1966 — losing to arch-segregationist Lester Maddox — and then immediately focused on the next campaign. Carter had spoken out against church segregation as a Baptist deacon and opposed racist “Dixiecrats” as a state senator. Yet as a local school board leader in the 1950s he had not pushed to end school segregation even after the Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education decision, despite his private support for integration. And in 1970, Carter ran for governor again as the more conservative Democrat against Carl Sanders, a wealthy businessman Carter mocked as “Cufflinks Carl.” Sanders never forgave him for anonymous, race-baiting flyers, which Carter disavowed. Ultimately, Carter won his races by attracting both Black voters and culturally conservative whites. Once in office, he was more direct. “I say to you quite frankly that the time for racial discrimination is over,” he declared in his 1971 inaugural address, setting a new standard for Southern governors that landed him on the cover of Time magazine. His statehouse initiatives included environmental protection, boosting rural education and overhauling antiquated executive branch structures. He proclaimed Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the slain civil rights leader’s home state. And he decided, as he received presidential candidates in 1972, that they were no more talented than he was. In 1974, he ran Democrats’ national campaign arm. Then he declared his own candidacy for 1976. An Atlanta newspaper responded with the headline: “Jimmy Who?” The Carters and a “Peanut Brigade” of family members and Georgia supporters camped out in Iowa and New Hampshire, establishing both states as presidential proving grounds. His first Senate endorsement: a young first-termer from Delaware named Joe Biden. Yet it was Carter’s ability to navigate America’s complex racial and rural politics that cemented the nomination. He swept the Deep South that November, the last Democrat to do so, as many white Southerners shifted to Republicans in response to civil rights initiatives. A self-declared “born-again Christian,” Carter drew snickers by referring to Scripture in a Playboy magazine interview, saying he “had looked on many women with lust. I’ve committed adultery in my heart many times.” The remarks gave Ford a new foothold and television comedians pounced — including NBC’s new “Saturday Night Live” show. But voters weary of cynicism in politics found it endearing. Carter chose Minnesota Sen. Walter “Fritz” Mondale as his running mate on a “Grits and Fritz” ticket. In office, he elevated the vice presidency and the first lady’s office. Mondale’s governing partnership was a model for influential successors Al Gore, Dick Cheney and Biden. Rosalynn Carter was one of the most involved presidential spouses in history, welcomed into Cabinet meetings and huddles with lawmakers and top aides. The Carters presided with uncommon informality: He used his nickname “Jimmy” even when taking the oath of office, carried his own luggage and tried to silence the Marine Band’s “Hail to the Chief.” They bought their clothes off the rack. Carter wore a cardigan for a White House address, urging Americans to conserve energy by turning down their thermostats. Amy, the youngest of four children, attended District of Columbia public school. Washington’s social and media elite scorned their style. But the larger concern was that “he hated politics,” according to Eizenstat, leaving him nowhere to turn politically once economic turmoil and foreign policy challenges took their toll. Carter partially deregulated the airline, railroad and trucking industries and established the departments of Education and Energy, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He designated millions of acres of Alaska as national parks or wildlife refuges. He appointed a then-record number of women and nonwhite people to federal posts. He never had a Supreme Court nomination, but he elevated civil rights attorney Ruth Bader Ginsburg to the nation’s second highest court, positioning her for a promotion in 1993. He appointed Paul Volker, the Federal Reserve chairman whose policies would help the economy boom in the 1980s — after Carter left office. He built on Nixon’s opening with China, and though he tolerated autocrats in Asia, pushed Latin America from dictatorships to democracy. But he couldn’t immediately tame inflation or the related energy crisis. And then came Iran. After he admitted the exiled Shah of Iran to the U.S. for medical treatment, the American Embassy in Tehran was overrun in 1979 by followers of the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Negotiations to free the hostages broke down repeatedly ahead of the failed rescue attempt. The same year, Carter signed SALT II, the new strategic arms treaty with Leonid Brezhnev of the Soviet Union, only to pull it back, impose trade sanctions and order a U.S. boycott of the Moscow Olympics after the Soviets invaded Afghanistan. Hoping to instill optimism, he delivered what the media dubbed his “malaise” speech, although he didn’t use that word. He declared the nation was suffering “a crisis of confidence.” By then, many Americans had lost confidence in the president, not themselves. Carter campaigned sparingly for reelection because of the hostage crisis, instead sending Rosalynn as Sen. Edward M. Kennedy challenged him for the Democratic nomination. Carter famously said he’d “kick his ass,” but was hobbled by Kennedy as Reagan rallied a broad coalition with “make America great again” appeals and asking voters whether they were “better off than you were four years ago.” Reagan further capitalized on Carter’s lecturing tone, eviscerating him in their lone fall debate with the quip: “There you go again.” Carter lost all but six states and Republicans rolled to a new Senate majority. Carter successfully negotiated the hostages’ freedom after the election, but in one final, bitter turn of events, Tehran waited until hours after Carter left office to let them walk free. At 56, Carter returned to Georgia with “no idea what I would do with the rest of my life.” Four decades after launching The Carter Center, he still talked of unfinished business. “I thought when we got into politics we would have resolved everything,” Carter told the AP in 2021. “But it’s turned out to be much more long-lasting and insidious than I had thought it was. I think in general, the world itself is much more divided than in previous years.” Still, he affirmed what he said when he underwent treatment for a cancer diagnosis in his 10th decade of life. “I’m perfectly at ease with whatever comes,” he said in 2015 . “I’ve had a wonderful life. I’ve had thousands of friends, I’ve had an exciting, adventurous and gratifying existence.” ___ Former Associated Press journalist Alex Sanz contributed to this report.
BRIDGETOWER CAPITAL LAUNCHES SOVEREIGN AI DATA LINEAGE SOLUTION AND PARTNERS WITH, INTERVISION SYSTEMS, AND PROVLABS - FACILITATOR OF $41B OF FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS - TO AUTHENTICATE AI DATA GLOBALLY(The Center Square) – U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Arizona, blasted U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Ur Jaddou for her agency approving illegal border crossers as sponsors for illegal border crossers. At a U.S. House Judiciary subcommittee hearing , Biggs also pointed out that the sponsors were found to be committing Social Security and other fraud under her watch. Biggs addressed rampant fraud in a program created by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for inadmissible citizens of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela, who don’t qualify for admission into the U.S. Under Mayorkas, they were flown into the country through a CHNV parole program, used a CBP One phone app to apply for entry, and were released into the country. Part of the process requires having a “supporter” fill out an application on behalf of the CHNV parolee. While Mayorkas claimed app user parolees and supporters were thoroughly vetted, multiple Office of Inspector General reports disproved this claim, expressing security risks at airports. In August, flights of CHNV illegal border crossers were temporarily suspended after a USCIS internal review found that tens of thousands of CHNV fraudulent applications were processed. Supporters used fake Social Security numbers and phone numbers and listed the same physical address on nearly 20,000 applications, according to the report, The Center Square reported . Biggs asked Jaddou if she disputed the fact that supporters used the same Social Security Number on CHNV applications, which “happened at least 3,200 times. The same phone number used at least 3,300 times. The same supporter email address was used on applications nearly 2,000 times.” Jaddou said she didn’t have the report in front of her and didn’t dispute it. “You don’t really want to admit there’s this much rampant fraud,” he said. Biggs next cited examples of fraud that weren’t fixed. “The same exact 184-word response was used on more than 1,800 applications by nearly 194 CHNV supporters,” he said. “More than 460 nonexistent zip codes were used on supported applications on behalf of more than 2,800 CHV aliens. You can dance around and say you don't have the report in front of you, but these are the facts. This program is rife with fraud.” As of Aug. 6, DHS had approved more than 80,000 CHNV supporters for the program who were in the U.S. on a temporary basis. USCIS approved 224 CHNV parolees who were already in the country illegally as sponsors for CHNV parolees that came after them, meaning illegal foreign nationals were sponsoring illegal foreign nationals. USCIS also approved 28,322 illegal foreign nationals shielded from deportation through Temporary Protected Status as CHVN supporters; “19,865 SLEs approved as CHNV supporters, 311 DACA recipients approved as CHNV supporters, 1,300-plus aliens in the U.S. on temporary visas approved as CHNV supporters, 64 refugees approved as CHNV supporters, 19,112 conditional permanent residents approved this season as CHNV supporters,” he said. “That is the program that you are administering. I'm not talking the aliens. I'm not getting into the violation of law of the U.S. code 1182, which states that the use of parole is supposed to be a case-by-case basis.” Biggs said the supporter application process was so rampant with fraud that it was temporarily shut down but wasn’t fixed. The fraud is “still ongoing. We're waiting for the next report to confirm that these things are still going on,” he said. In addition to the USCIS report, a U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security investigation found that "as of mid-October 2023, there were 1.6 million inadmissible aliens awaiting travel authorizations through the CHNV program” and DHS was using 50 airports worldwide to fly them in, The Center Square reported . None flown into the country have a legal basis to enter the U.S. before being paroled through the CHNV program, DHS documents the committee obtained state. "All individuals paroled into the United States are, by definition, inadmissible, including those paroled under the CHNV processes," one of the DHS documents states. The CHNV parole program was among more than a dozen that House Republicans identified as illegal and cited as reasons to impeach Mayorkas. According to the latest U.S. Customs and Border Protection data , more than 852,000 illegal foreign nationals were processed and released into the country through the CBP One App and more than 531,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans deemed inadmissible were released into the country through the CHNV parole program, as of October. Under the Biden administration, more than three million illegal border crossers were reported from CHNV countries, The Center Square reported . Many have been directly linked to violent crimes committed against Americans, The Center Square reported .
Global stocks mostly fall ahead of ECB, US inflation dataBANGKOK — Japanese automakers Honda and Nissan will attempt to merge and create the world's third-largest automaker by sales as the industry undergoes dramatic changes in its transition away from fossil fuels. The two companies said they had signed a memorandum of understanding on Monday and that smaller Nissan alliance member Mitsubishi Motors also had agreed to join the talks on integrating their businesses. Honda will initially lead the new management, retaining the principles and brands of each company. Following is a quick look at what a combined Honda and Nissan would mean for the companies, and for the auto industry. Nissan Chief Executive Makoto Uchida, left, and Honda Chief Executive Toshihiro Mibe, center, and Takao Kato CEO of Mitsubishi Motors, right, arrive to attend a joint news conference Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko) The ascent of Chinese automakers is rattling the industry at a time when manufacturers are struggling to shift from fossil fuel-driven vehicles to electrics. Relatively inexpensive EVs from China's BYD, Great Wall and Nio are eating into the market shares of U.S. and Japanese car companies in China and elsewhere. Japanese automakers have lagged behind big rivals in EVs and are now trying to cut costs and make up for lost time. Nissan, Honda and Mitsubishi announced in August that they will share components for electric vehicles like batteries and jointly research software for autonomous driving to adapt better to dramatic changes in the auto industry centered around electrification. A preliminary agreement between Honda, Japan's second-largest automaker, and Nissan, third largest, was announced in March. A merger could result in a behemoth worth about $55 billion based on the market capitalization of all three automakers. Joining forces would help the smaller Japanese automakers add scale to compete with Japan's market leader Toyota Motor Corp. and with Germany's Volkswagen AG. Toyota itself has technology partnerships with Japan's Mazda Motor Corp. and Subaru Corp. Nissan Chief Executive Makoto Uchida, left, Honda Chief Executive Toshihiro Mibe, center, and Takao Kato, CEO of Mitsubishi Motors, right, pose for photographers during a joint news conference in Tokyo, Japan, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko) Nissan has truck-based body-on-frame large SUVs such as the Armada and Infiniti QX80 that Honda doesn't have, with large towing capacities and good off-road performance, said Sam Fiorani, vice president of AutoForecast Solutions. Nissan also has years of experience building batteries and electric vehicles, and gas-electric hybird powertrains that could help Honda in developing its own EVs and next generation of hybrids, he said. "Nissan does have some product segments where Honda doesn't currently play," that a merger or partnership could help, said Sam Abuelsamid, a Detroit-area automotive industry analsyt. While Nissan's electric Leaf and Ariya haven't sold well in the U.S., they're solid vehicles, Fiorani said. "They haven't been resting on their laurels, and they have been developing this technology," he said. "They have new products coming that could provide a good platform for Honda for its next generation." Nissan said last month that it was slashing 9,000 jobs, or about 6% of its global work force, and reducing global production capacity by 20% after reporting a quarterly loss of 9.3 billion yen ($61 million). Earlier this month it reshuffled its management and its chief executive, Makoto Uchida, took a 50% pay cut to take responsibility for the financial woes, saying Nissan needed to become more efficient and respond better to market tastes, rising costs and other global changes. Fitch Ratings recently downgraded Nissan's credit outlook to "negative," citing worsening profitability, partly due to price cuts in the North American market. But it noted that it has a strong financial structure and solid cash reserves that amounted to 1.44 trillion yen ($9.4 billion). Nissan's share price has fallen to the point where it is considered something of a bargain. A report in the Japanese financial magazine Diamond said talks with Honda gained urgency after the Taiwan maker of iPhones Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., better known as Foxconn, began exploring a possible acquisition of Nissan as part of its push into the EV sector. The company has struggled for years following a scandal that began with the arrest of its former chairman Carlos Ghosn in late 2018 on charges of fraud and misuse of company assets, allegations that he denies. He eventually was released on bail and fled to Lebanon. Honda reported its profits slipped nearly 20% in the first half of the April-March fiscal year from a year earlier, as sales suffered in China. Toyota made 11.5 million vehicles in 2023, while Honda rolled out 4 million and Nissan produced 3.4 million. Mitsubishi Motors made just over 1 million. Even after a merger Toyota would remain the leading Japanese automaker. All the global automakers are facing potential shocks if President-elect Donald Trump follows through on threats to raise or impose tariffs on imports of foreign products, even from allies like Japan and neighboring countries like Canada and Mexico. Nissan is among the major car companies that have adjusted their supply chains to include vehicles assembled in Mexico. Meanwhile, analysts say there is an "affordability shift" taking place across the industry, led by people who feel they cannot afford to pay nearly $50,000 for a new vehicle. In American, a vital market for companies like Nissan, Honda and Toyota, that's forcing automakers to consider lower pricing, which will eat further into industry profits. ____ AP Auto Writer Tom Krisher contributed to this report from Detroit. Airbags, advanced driver assistance features, and high-strength materials mean that the safest cars today are far better at protecting people from injuries than ever before. Although most new cars compare well to their predecessors, some stand above the rest. The safest cars for 2025 offer excellent occupant protection and also do a good job of preventing accidents from happening in the first place. Based on testing data from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety , or IIHS, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration , or NHTSA, these are some of the safest cars available today. Ranging from inexpensive compact cars and mainstream midsize sedans to stylish station wagons, posh luxury cars, and sporty coupes and convertibles, Edmunds shares a list that has something for just about everyone. For those who prefer a higher seating position and maybe some added practicality, Edmunds' list of safest SUVs is for you. The stylish Mazda 3 has a lot to offer compact-car shoppers, including great looks, a composed driving experience, and reasonable fuel economy from its base 2.0-liter engine. It's also one of the safest cars in its class, earning a perfect five stars in NHTSA crash testing and sterling crashworthiness and collision avoidance scores from the IIHS. Its standard features are forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, and lane departure prevention. With mature styling, a premium interior, and an efficient hybrid powertrain option, the 2025 Honda Civic is a great option if safety is a concern since it aces almost all of the IIHS' crash tests and earns a five-star safety rating from the federal government. It also comes standard with adaptive cruise control, lane departure prevention, and forward collision warning with automatic emergency braking. The Civic falls short slightly in the IIHS' updated moderate overlap front test, which now accounts for rear passenger safety, but even so, it's one of the safest cars in its class. Reflective of parent company BMW, today's Mini Cooper is well constructed and features premium safety features that belie its small size, including automatic emergency braking and forward collision warning. Although the Mini hasn't been tested by NHTSA, the IIHS gives the Cooper its highest score of Good in the original driver-side small overlap front, moderate overlap front, and side-impact tests. That said, the IIHS doesn't place the Cooper on its Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ lists since it hasn't been evaluated on the updated battery of passenger-side small overlap front, moderate overlap front, or side-impact tests. Expect the new-for-2025 Mini Cooper to earn decent crash ratings in those scenarios, especially since it shares its strong platform with the outgoing model. With its recent redesign, the Toyota Prius transformed from a frumpy little caterpillar to a stylish and efficient butterfly. It also became a very safe hybrid hatchback. Perfect scores in all of its government and IIHS crash tests, as well as a sophisticated system of collision avoidance technology, earn it top marks. It's also one of our favorite cars on the market, period, as evidenced by its status as a 2024 Edmunds Top Rated vehicle. The Honda Accord is among the safest midsize sedans on the market today thanks to excellent crashworthiness scores and a competent standard collision prevention system. It's a Top Safety Pick+, beating out rivals like the Hyundai Sonata, Kia K5, and Subaru Legacy, and the Accord also earns a perfect five-star rating from NHTSA. Honda's hybrid-intensive product planning is on full display here—all but the two lowest Accord trims have a hybrid powertrain—and it's also among the most spacious cars in its class. Like its Honda Accord rival, the Toyota Camry is also an IIHS Top Safety Pick+ with a five-star NHTSA rating. It also has a very impressive suite of driver assistance and safety technology, including lane departure prevention with active centering, full-speed adaptive cruise control, and automatic emergency braking. The Camry edges out the Accord in IIHS testing thanks to a more effective collision avoidance system, but both cars are remarkably well matched otherwise. The fully electric Hyundai Ioniq 6 offers excellent safety and collision prevention, with excellent scores across the entire line of IIHS tests. The Ioniq 6 hasn't been tested for rollover resistance by NHTSA, but it earned a four-star front safety rating and a five-star side-impact rating in government tests. Like most EVs, the Hyundai Ioniq 6 comes standard with forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, and lane departure prevention. It also offers up to 342 miles of all-electric driving in its longest-range trim level. The Acura Integra is a close mechanical cousin to the Honda Civic, so it's no surprise it does well in both the IIHS' and NHTSA's crash tests. The luxury hatchback is a Top Safety Pick+ and earns a perfect five stars in government testing. The AcuraWatch safety suite is standard on the Integra, bringing automatic emergency braking, lane centering, lane departure prevention, and adaptive cruise control. The Mercedes-Benz C-Class is a safe option in the popular small luxury sedan segment thanks to its good scores in IIHS crash testing. Mercedes' best-selling sedan also comes standard with automatic emergency braking and forward collision warning, which helps it earn a Top Safety Pick award. However, it hasn't been tested by the NHTSA. Both the Genesis G80 and the fully electric Genesis Electrified G80 earn a Top Safety Pick+ score from the IIHS thanks to their good scores on the agency's crash tests, as well as a comprehensive suite of active safety features that avoided collisions with simulated pedestrians. The internal-combustion-engine G80 earned a perfect five-star safety rating from NHTSA, and although the Electrified G80 hasn't been tested by the feds just yet, it should likely excel in those tests too. The flagship Genesis G90 sedan competes with the Mercedes-Benz S-Class and BMW 7 Series, and the South Korean automaker clearly hasn't skimped on safety in its fight against the establishment. Although it hasn't been subjected to the NHTSA array of tests, it aced almost all of its IIHS tests, and a long list of standard active safety and driver assistance features sets it apart from the stingy German makes that charge extra for them. With handsome styling and a well-finished interior, the Volvo V60 is a very appealing station wagon for those looking for such a thing. It's also quite safe, with good crashworthiness scores in the IIHS' original moderate overlap front and side-impact scores. Unfortunately, since it hasn't been tested with the updated versions of those tests, it didn't earn this year's Top Safety Pick award, but it was called a Top Safety Pick+ in 2022. NHTSA also gives the V60 a five-star safety rating. Although the Mercedes-Benz E 450 All-Terrain isn't a traditional wagon — it follows the lifted almost-crossover formula shared with the Audi A6 Allroad and Volvo V90 Cross Country — we'll take what we can get in this dwindling category. The All-Terrain hasn't been tested by the IIHS or NHTSA, but a previous-generation E-Class earned a 2023 Top Safety Pick+ award, and Mercedes isn't the kind of company that goes backward when it comes to safety. The E 450 All-Terrain comes standard with automatic emergency braking and forward collision warning, though, at this price, Benz should just make other active safety features standard. With a five-star NHTSA safety rating, standard forward collision warning and emergency braking, and excellent IIHS crashworthiness scores on its original tests, the Audi A6 Allroad does a good job protecting people (both passengers and pedestrians) from crashes. However, since the IIHS hasn't subjected the Allroad to its updated side and moderate front crash criteria, it lost its Top Safety Pick+ status in 2022. Still, it should be a fine option for luxury longroof shoppers. Both the Ford Mustang coupe and convertible perform well in crash testing. The coupe received a five-star safety rating from NHTSA, and both variants scored decently on all the IIHS tests they've undergone. They also come standard with forward collision warning, lane departure prevention, and automatic emergency braking. However, the IIHS needs to test both models on its updated criteria before it will rate them. Although the government hasn't tested it, the Toyota GR86 aced all of its IIHS crashworthiness tests when it was new for the 2022 model year. Unfortunately, since it hasn't been subjected to the IIHS' updated testing since then, it lost its Top Safety Pick+ status. Still, this is a fun-to-drive, sporty coupe that comes standard with a long list of active safety features, and it's reasonably priced to boot. Mechanically identical to the Toyota GR86, the 2025 Subaru BRZ achieves the same safety ratings—who would have thought? It likewise received a Top Safety Pick+ score in 2022 that lapsed when the IIHS updated its criteria for 2023, but like the Toyota, it has a long list of active safety features to go along with its lightweight, rip-roaring sports car attitude. The Audi A5 lost its traditional two-door coupe body style after 2024, but the five-door Sportback body style remains before it's replaced later in 2025. Although it hasn't seen the IIHS' more stringent test regimen, its original crashworthiness scores were good enough to earn it a Top Safety Pick award as recently as 2022. The Sportback is the only variant to be tested by the government, where it earned a five-star safety rating. This story was produced by Edmunds and reviewed and distributed by Stacker. Get the latest local business news delivered FREE to your inbox weekly.
This week, an initiative aimed at making it easier to become Swiss cleared the 100,000 signature hurdle required to qualify for a referendum, reported RTS. Switzerland is one of the most difficult places to gain citizenship. The referendum, for which 104,603 valid signatures were collected, aims to make naturalisation easier in several ways. Currently, there is a 10-year residence requirement, the last 5 of which must have been on a C-permit. The initiative wants this cut to 5 years on any permit. It also wants to remove other requirements, such as evidence of integration and the requirement to not have received welfare in the years preceding an application for citizenship. Other requirements, such as mastering the local language and not having a criminal record, would remain but be applied less strictly. Language requirements would be lowered to a basic level and only crimes that result in long prison sentences would be considered when disqualifying someone from citizenship. Non citizens are largely excluded from voting. Some exceptions allow some to vote at a municipal level. The vote organisers point out that around a quarter of Switzerland’s population are not Swiss. Excluding such a significant part of the population from the democratic process is undemocratic. Swiss citizens on the other hand get to decide on issues that sometimes specifically affect non-Swiss residents. The initiative’s website sets out the arguments of the organisers in more detail.Jimmy Carter, the 39th US president, has died at 100
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