#IMWeekly: December 13, 2014

Worldwide: Powerful Linux trojan uncovered

Researchers from the Moscow-based Kaspersky lab, have uncovered an extremely stealthy trojan for Linux, and part of "Turla," an existing advanced persistent threat (APT) discovered in August. According to the Kaspersky lab, this backdoor has been used for at least four years to target government institutions, embassies, military, education, research, and pharmaceutical companies.

Sweden: Pirate Bay taken down after police raid in Sweden

The popular file-sharing website Pirate Bay as well as its forum was shut down after a police raided a server room in Stockholm following alleged copyright violation claims. The website remains offline as of Monday December 15. Given Pirate Bay's survival of past raids, it is unclear how long the shutdown will last.  

USA: Aftermath from Sony hack continues

A series of cyber attacks against Sony Pictures USA and the resulting leaks continue to cause headaches and embarrassment to Sony. Troubles for Sony may not yet be over, considering the hackers' statement that they are preparing a "Christmas gift". The identity of the hacking group GOP remains unknown, but indicators suggest that the North Korean government may be behind it. 

Spain: Google News pulls out of Spain

Google News, Google's curated news selection service, plans to totally shut down its service in Spain. This decision was made following a newly passed law requiring Google and all other aggregators to pay local publishers for snippets or links to stories or pay a penalty of almost $750,000. 

#imweekly is a weekly round-up of news about Internet content controls and activity around the world. To read more, click here.