Google wants to make it easier for the EU to handle its cloud components such as Gmail and online services via the Meet conference system in accordance with the law. Google will make standard contractual clauses available for cloud services, a data protection lawyer for the company explained on Monday at the privacy conference of the IT association Bitkom. This would apply with immediate effect.

With regard to the "Privacy Shield", all available instruments are to be used to "make the best of the existing legal uncertainty", the spokesman said. With their "Schrems II decision," the Luxembourg judges once again found that U.S. laws such as the Cloud Act or the Foreign Intelligence Act (FISA) still allow mass surveillance by security agencies such as the NSA or the FBI.

Source: Heise

A majority of European countries have legally recognized one or more sign languages. However, Switzerland is still one of the countries that does not explicitly recognize sign language legally. In Switzerland, about 10,000 people use one of the three sign languages as their first language. These include the Swiss-German sign language, the Langue de signes française and the Lingua dei segni italiana.

In a current report, which addresses four submitted postulates, the Federal Council is currently examining various possibilities of legal recognition: on the one hand, the recognition of Swiss sign languages within the framework of agreements of the Council of Europe, on the other hand, also within the framework of language freedom. Further under discussion is a recognition as national languages, partial official languages as well as promotional languages.

Confederation and cantons promote sign language

However, the Federal Council does not see the recognition of Swiss sign languages as a mandatory prerequisite to further improve the social integrity of hearing-impaired people and has instructed the Department of Home Affairs to expand the dialogue with the organizations of the deaf as well as the federal and cantonal agencies involved and to examine the possibilities for improvement mentioned in the report.

The disability insurance already promotes the professional integration of hearing-impaired people by funding sign language interpreters. There is also a Disability Equality Act that enables hearing-impaired children and young people and their relatives to use appropriate communication technology, including sign language, the Federal Council writes in a statement.

Source: the Federal Council

From January 18 to 21, 2022, Swissbau will once again open its doors as a major multi-sector event for the Swiss construction and real estate industry. With its trade fair, Swissbau Focus and Swissbau Innovation Lab formats, Swissbau is regarded as a meeting place for decision-makers from the real estate industry.

"It's great that we can hold the trade fair despite all the obstacles," says Swissbau Director Rudolf Pfander at a media orientation in Allschwil. According to Pfander, the last few years have also been used to develop formats - such as Swissbau Focus - in which certain brands are presented that would otherwise not be represented. He was alluding to various representatives of the architecture industry. The main partner in Swissbau Focus this year is once again the Swiss Society of Engineers and Architects (SIA). "Today, you have to exchange ideas on an interdisciplinary basis in order to get ahead," Pfander said.

Over 60,000 visitors expected

The Swissbau Focus events will feature over 30 partners and 300 speakers from Switzerland and abroad. The event will take place hybrid, respectively live and also remotely, via an online communication platform. A total of around 60,000 visitors are expected at Swissbau 2022 in any case, although the "crystal ball view" is not yet given at this point, even with the 3G concept.

The topics revolve around digital sustainability, new processes, digital sustainability in transformation, and electromobility. The presence of Holzbau Schweiz is also proudly announced, on the occasion of which an entire concept of an all-wood high-rise building will be shown. In Swissbau Focus, the networking platform of Swissbau, a "full program" with a lot of content is to be expected. Discussed will be many in the 80 events many current topics and future trends. The platform is intended as an established meeting place for all players in the construction and real estate industry, he said.

The whole Program of Swissbau 2022 can be experienced live at Messe Basel from January 18 to 21, 2022.

Source: Swissbau

Out of the home office, into the home office: the corona virus has been spreading again since the start of the cold season. Already in the 2nd quarter of 2020, according to Ifo Institute Due to the pandemic, a large proportion of employees work from home at least some of the time. A good reason to give the home workplace an upgrade: with biologically effective lighting. "Light is not just for seeing, it also clocks the human body's internal clock," explains Dr. Jürgen Waldorf, managing director of the industry initiative licht.de. Lighting that mimics natural daylight changes brightness, light color and dynamics throughout the day. In this way, it supports the biorhythm and promotes vitality and well-being.

Some modern LED luminaires already have integrated programs that reflect this complex process. Well suited for the study, for example, are ceiling luminaires or professional floor luminaires that work according to the principle of Human Centric Lighting (HCL) - a lighting concept that focuses on people and their needs. "In the morning, bright, cool light awakens the spirits and promotes concentration," says Waldorf. High blue components in the light (at least 5300 Kelvin) ensure this. Towards evening, the light color then becomes more reddish, the lighting more subdued (e.g. 2700 Kelvin). This allows the body to prepare itself optimally for a good night's rest. Screens should then be operated in night mode. This promotes restful sleep.

Requirements for workplaces

The basic lighting in the study helps to avoid too strong contrasts between the workplace and the environment and is easy on the eyes. Additional and high-quality luminaires make sense in the case of constant home work, because then the also legislator requires similar conditions as in the office.

For reading tasks, the standard requires an illuminance of at least 500 lux. To achieve this, an adjustable desk luminaire is used directly at the workstation. The expert's tip: "When writing, the light should come from the left for right-handers and from the right for left-handers, so that no shadows interfere. Position the luminaire so that there are no reflections on screens and shiny surfaces," advises Waldorf.

Tip for buying luminaires

In the immediate vicinity, the standard still sets 300 lux. Since very few people use a luxmeter at home, the rule of thumb for buying luminaires is about 1000 lumens for desk luminaires and about 600 lumens for the surrounding area. LED luminaires with HCL function have significantly more lumens. However, since standards only ever specify minimum values, more light is also the better choice in many cases.

Source: licht.de

Dinesh Bharadia from the University of California, San Diego and colleagues have decisively improved data transmission over short distances and the location of objects using UWB (ultra-wideband) technology. It now works with a delay of one millisecond and requires so little power that a device can last for two years on one button cell.

Accurate to within a few centimeters

UWB can be used, for example, for navigation inside very large buildings, for locating products in huge warehouses, or for communication between mobile devices - Apple and Samsung have already installed corresponding transmitting and receiving units in their latest top models. However, these are not yet based on the new technology.

Because it is more precise, UWB is considered a competitor for WLAN, Bluetooth and NFC. Two smartphones equipped with it can, for example, locate and communicate with each other to within a few centimeters. UWB systems typically consist of two main components: A small tracking device called a tag, which can be attached to an object, and a series of devices that act as receivers. They are installed at various locations in the environment to detect the tag's radio signals.

From many signals becomes one

In today's UWB tracking, the tag sends signals to all receivers. These send it back to the tag. The distances between the tag and each receiver are calculated from the propagation times of the signals. From this, the tag's position can be determined using triangulation. The problem with this process, according to Bharadia, is that it involves many signal exchanges.

"That makes the system slow. It's not scalable and doesn't provide 3D localization," Bharadia says. His modified system simply sends a buzz signal to all receivers, which send it back. His team modified the receivers so that they can calculate the exact position of the tag from it, and in three dimensions. It will be used in virtual reality games, to dynamically determine the position of athletes during a game and in robots for healthcare.

(pressetext.com)

Palo Alto Networks has launched a new Study which indicates four increasing ransomware groups. Already 151 companies in the U.S. have been affected by illegal data disclosures. The willingness to pay ransoms to companies has also increased, it said. The peak for payments on ransomware demands in 2020 increased from 15 million to 30 million compared to previous years (2015-2019), he said.

This indicates that encryption Trojans are still a thriving business and the extortion schemes are becoming increasingly brazen. Overall, the Unit 42 Ransomware Threat Report lists four new groups whose threat patterns are on the rise.

AvosLocker: This group also offers technical support on the Darknet to help victims recover a system after a ransomware attack. They market their software as a Ransomware-as-a-Service (Raas) and adorn themselves with trophies from extorted companies in the US, the UK and the United Arab Emirates. According to their own information, ransom sums have already ranged between $50,000 and $70,000.

Hive: Hive" is a group that relies on double extortion, which, like AvosLocker, has been appearing since June 2021. Hive uses all sorts of extortion tools and has already attacked airlines and various institutions in the United States. Characteristic features include countdown counters or various means of pressure to spread the extorted data on social networks. Hive was already noticed in June 2021.

HelloKitty: HelloKitty is not a new ransomware group. At that time, the attackers mainly targeted Windows systems. In July, however, Palo Alto also observed a Linux variant of HelloKitty, which is particularly designed for cloud and data centers. Victims are mostly communicated with via mail or Tor chats. The group's highest ransom demand so far was ten million dollars.

Lockbit 2.0: This group also operates as Raas providers on the Darknet and has been noticed for three years. However, an increase in sophisticated attacks has been observed. The ransomware provider advertises that it offers the fastest encryption on the market. The group's leak site lists 52 victims from various countries around the world, including Switzerland.

Source: Palo Alto Networks

In a statement, Suva reports an increase in suspected cases of insurance fraud. In total, Suva investigated 222,000 cases last year in which a daily allowance or pension was paid out. In 2236 suspected cases (an increase of 23.6 percent), unjustified benefit payments of 12.6 million francs were prevented.

The black sheep lurk in various places. A small but active segment of health care providers, such as physicians and hospitals, intentionally bill inaccurately or incorrectly in order to receive more benefits. A doctor for example recorded more than 24 working hours and issued invoices on days when he was demonstrably on vacation. In some cases, treatments were also billed as outpatient services before or only after a hospital stay. The total loss for all health and accident insurers affected amounted to more than 2.7 million Swiss francs. However, an overwhelming majority are honest, Suva writes.

Source: Suva

Technology and globalization have greatly changed the conditions and environment of work, with possible negative effects on the health of employees. The current Covid-19 pandemic is affecting the way companies work. Corporate culture (e.g. leadership, interaction, communication) can contribute significantly to employee health.

At September 15, 2022 takes place on this occasion the 4th symposium / Journée suissepro will be held at the Hotel National in Bern. The conference is aimed at professionals in the field of occupational safety and health, as well as managers. Renowned speakers from science and practice will present different aspects of this complex of topics.

Source: suissepro

The 76th UN General Assembly started on September 14, 2021 and lasts for one year -the high-level opening week took place during the week of September 20-24. President Parmelin and Federal Councillor Cassis traveled to New York to participate in several events and to exchange views with the heads of state. In addition to the candidacy for the UN Security Council and dealing with the consequences of Covid-19, the priorities also concern the ongoing processes within the UN on cyber security, in which Geneva plays a decisive role.

The Federal Council has set itself three priorities for the 76th session of the UN General Assembly: Switzerland should have a solid mandate at the UN in June 2022 for various leadership roles in humanitarian or peace-related areas, or make its contribution with a security membership. Another focus would be on the sustainability of food systems, the availability of data, and environmental aspects. In third place is the promotion of a "free, open and secure digital space," as the Federal Council writes in a press release.

He said Switzerland was already actively participating in relevant UN processes on cybersecurity and cybercrime and therefore wanted to highlight its leading role of international Geneva in the field of cyber and digitalization. In New York, Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis underlined the need to do more for prevention and to strengthen cooperation between the various actors, including states, non-governmental organizations, universities and the private sector.

Source: Federal Council/EDA

The importance of occupational health management (OHM) is increasing in Switzerland. This is shown by a BGM monitoring of the Swiss Health Promotion Foundation among companies with 50 or more employees. According to the survey, the commitment of companies has grown steadily in recent years. However, there is a need to catch up when it comes to raising awareness of stress and mental health. According to the survey, around 20 percent of the companies do not yet have any instruments for the strategic anchoring of corresponding measures and the monitoring of their effectiveness. However, 90 percent of the companies are aware of the importance of occupational health management.

Majority of companies want to increase employee satisfaction

As the monitoring confirms, the majority of companies want to increase the satisfaction and well-being of their employees through their commitment to occupational health management. It is also important for companies to reduce the absenteeism rate and generally increase their attractiveness as an employer. The focus is also on social responsibility and the public image, which should emerge strengthened. While BGM is being implemented more intensively in the service sector, hardly any improvements have been observed since 2016 in the industrial sector, for example.

Increase in digital tools

On average, companies in German-speaking Switzerland have a higher degree of implementation of OHM than companies in French-speaking Switzerland or Ticino. However, as a result of the Covid 19 pandemic, companies in the French- and Italian-speaking parts of Switzerland report more frequently improved conditions for OHM than those in the German-speaking parts of Switzerland. Two-thirds of the companies use external services and tools for the implementation of occupational health management.

While consultations, training, tools such as checklists, and external case management are the most commonly used, online tools and apps have gained prominence in recent years.

Source: Health Promotion Switzerland 

According to a Communication of the Federal Roads Office (Astra) the number of people killed and seriously injured on Swiss roads fell significantly in the first half of 2021 compared with the same period in 2021. A total of 86 people were killed and 1579 people were seriously injured. Compared to the same period last year, there was a decrease from 37 to 27 persons killed in passenger car accidents.

For example, among those seriously injured in accidents presumed to be self-inflicted, there was a decrease in accidents under the influence of alcohol, while there was an increase in accidents attributed to speeding. The most frequent cause of accidents was due to skidding or self-inflicted accidents.

Among traffic victims among motorcyclists, the number of fatalities and serious injuries in the age group of 45 to 54 years increased significantly, he said. 15 pedestrians were killed in the first half of 2021. In the first half of 2021, the number of pedestrians killed and seriously injured in the age groups from 45 to 74 years decreased significantly.

Accidents involving e-bikes continue to claim many lives. A total of 235 people were seriously injured. Of these, 43 people had accidents with a fast e-bike and 2021 with a slow e-bike. Especially among 65- to 74-year-olds, the number of fatalities and serious injuries involving a slow e-bike had increased from 30 to 49 compared to the previous year.

Source: Astra

Researchers of the University of Cambridge have developed a new method for countering drone attacks on airports. This combines data from radar surveillance of the airspace with statistical calculation methods. The result is an almost certain prediction of the drone's flight path. This could prevent a repeat of an incident like the one at London's Gatwick Airport in 2018. Back then, hundreds of flights were canceled because of fears that a drone could endanger takeoffs.

Target of the drone predictable

The researchers' new technology can identify drones that are trying to enter the airspace above an airport based on their flight paths. At the same time, it excludes flying objects that do not pose a threat. The software-based solution uses a stochastic or random model to identify the drone's target early on, even though it could change at any time. Simon Godsill's team takes advantage of a peculiarity of drone navigation. They navigate with intermediate targets that they head for in a straight line, in a sense shimmying from waymark to waymark.

The program analyzes the flight path of a drone, its speed and characteristics such as flight altitude. From this, it determines in real time the waymark that the drone will head for next, even before it reaches it. After several analyses, the program recognizes the final target and sounds an alarm if it is in danger, so that flight operations can be stopped or the drone destroyed. False alarms are said to be eliminated. In tests in the environment of virtual airports, the drone targets could be predicted with a high hit rate. Threats were detected within seconds, he said. In a real scenario, it is crucial for security whether a threat is detected in seconds or minutes.

(Pressetext.com)