Latest news with #GCP
Time of India
a day ago
- Time of India
1,400 drug traffickers held; smugglers now hide bags in AC coaches after unreserved travel to Tamil Nadu
Chennai: In 2024, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) arrested 1,489 traffickers and seized narcotics worth over ₹227.5 crore across India, with Tamil Nadu emerging as a key destination in several major seizures. Intelligence gathered by the RPF and Greater Chennai Police (GCP) revealed a shift in modus operandi among smugglers using the railway network to move drugs into the state. One such emerging trend is traffickers travelling without reservations, blending in with unreserved passengers—often migrant workers from Odisha and West Bengal—to avoid leaving any traceable digital footprint. RPF officials say this tactic allows traffickers to bypass identification that would otherwise be possible through reserved ticket records. To counter this, the RPF intensified checks in unreserved compartments and flagged passengers with disproportionately large bags. However, in response, traffickers have now adopted a new tactic: abandoning drug-laden bags in First AC and Second AC coaches, where checks are rare, said a senior police officer from GCP's Anti-Narcotics Intelligence Unit. You Can Also Check: Chennai AQI | Weather in Chennai | Bank Holidays in Chennai | Public Holidays in Chennai "They later board the train a few stops ahead of Chennai and retrieve these bags just before reaching the city. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 안구건조 걱정 없이 안전하게! 강남아이원스안과 지금 신청하기 Undo Many get down at lesser-patrolled stations like Tada, Gummidipoondi, or Ponneri to avoid the intense surveillance at Chennai Central," the officer said. This new method came to light during recent operations, including a case in March 2024 where 31.5 kg of methamphetamine, valued at ₹150 crore, was seized from a passenger on the Pothigai Express in Madurai. Tamil Nadu continues to be a prominent endpoint in narcotics routes from Odisha, Jharkhand, and the northeast, especially for cannabis and synthetic drugs. With trains running through relatively unchecked corridors and night services offering anonymity, traffickers have increasingly relied on railways to supply narcotics to high-demand cities like Chennai and Bengaluru. According to the RPF, apart from general compartments, parcel vans, and luggage sections of long-distance trains are also frequently exploited. The RPF, now empowered under the NDPS Act since 2019, is using dog squads, crime mapping, and joint raids with the Narcotics Control Bureau to crack down on this network. But officers admit challenges remain, especially with scanning gaps in parcel services and the absence of X-ray baggage checks at key stations in Tamil Nadu.
Khaleej Times
3 days ago
- Khaleej Times
Tenable research finds rampant cloud misconfigurations exposing critical data and secrets
Tenable®, the exposure management company, today released its 2025 Cloud Security Risk Report, which revealed that 9% of publicly accessible cloud storage contains sensitive data. Ninety-seven percent of such data is restricted or confidential, creating easy and prime targets for threat actors. Cloud environments face dramatically increased risk due to exposed sensitive data, misconfigurations, underlying vulnerabilities and poorly stored secrets – such as passwords, API keys and credentials. The 2025 Cloud Security Risk Report provides a deep dive into the most prominent cloud security issues impacting data, identity, workload and AI resources and offers practical mitigation strategies to help organisations proactively reduce risk and close critical gaps. Key findings from the report include: Secrets found in diverse cloud resources, putting organisations at risk: Over half of organisations (54%) store at least one secret directly in Amazon Web Services (AWS) Elastic Container Service (ECS) task definitions — creating a direct attack path. Similar issues were found among organisations using Google Cloud Platform (GCP) Cloud Run (52%) and Microsoft Azure Logic Apps workflows (31%). Alarmingly, 3.5% of all AWS Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) instances contain secrets in user data — major risk given how widely EC2 is used. Cloud workload security is improving, but toxic combinations persist: While the number of organisations with a 'toxic cloud trilogy' – a workload that is a publicly exposed, critically vulnerable, and highly privileged – has decreased from 38% to 29%, this dangerous combination still represents a significant and common risk. Using Identity Providers (IdPs) alone doesn't eliminate risk: While 83% of AWS organisations are exercising best practices in using IdP services to manage their cloud identities, overly-permissive defaults, excessive entitlements, and standing permissions still expose them to identity-based threats. "Despite the security incidents we have witnessed over the past few years, organisations continue to leave critical cloud assets, from sensitive data to secrets, exposed through avoidable misconfigurations,' said Ari Eitan, director of cloud security research, Tenable. "The path for attackers is often simple: exploit public access, steal embedded secrets or abuse overprivileged identities. To close these gaps, security teams need full visibility across their environments and the ability to prioritise and automate remediation before threats escalate. The cloud demands continuous, proactive risk management, and not reactive patchwork." The report reflects findings by the Tenable Cloud Research team based on telemetry from workloads across diverse public cloud and enterprise environments, analysed from October 2024 through March 2025.
The Hindu
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Tamil actor Krishna arrested after actor Srikanth in drug cartel case in Chennai
Tamil actor Krishna and his associate were arrested by the Nungambakkam Police of the Greater Chennai Police (GCP) on Thursday (June 26, 2025) in connection with a drug case, following the seizure of narcotics from the associate and the discovery of WhatsApp chats between them and others, allegedly indicating their involvement. Krishna is the second actor to be arrested in the case, after actor Srikanth, alias Sridhar Krishnamachari, was arrested on Monday (June 23, 2025). What is the case about? The investigation into the case began after two groups clashed at a bar in Nungambakkam last month. Eight persons, including Prasad (a former AIADMK functionary), were arrested in connection with the incident. The probe revealed that Prasad had been involved in several offences, including attempted murder, job fraud, and extortion. The police also uncovered links between Prasad and a drug cartel comprising Prado alias Pradeep and his associates, including John, a Ghanaian national operating out of Bengaluru. The police said Prasad had been obtaining cocaine from the group for the past three years and selling it to his close circle of friends, including actor Srikanth. Details of the financial transactions and electronic evidence were also gathered. Srikanth was arrested by the Nungambakkam Police on Monday. Actor Krishna's involvement Upon being summoned, actor Krishna appeared before the police at the Thousand Lights station on Wednesday (June 25). He was medically examined and interrogated for several hours until Thursday evening. In a statement, the GCP said that, in pursuance of the investigation into the drug case, 'Krishna was arrested for procuring drugs, using them, and giving them to his friends, while his associate Kevin was arrested for procuring drugs, using them, and selling them — based on clinching evidence.' The police said they had been on the lookout for Krishna, who had been absconding, and were conducting the investigation based on strong leads, as well as scientific and technical evidence. Jesvir alias Kevin was also apprehended on Thursday. The police seized approximately 0.5 grams of cocaine, 10.30 grams of methamphetamine, 2.75 grams of MDMA, 2.40 grams of OG ganja, 30 grams of regular ganja, ziplock covers, weighing machines, ₹45,200 in cash, a laptop, and a mobile phone from him. The police said Krishna regularly received drugs from Kevin, consumed them, and also shared them with his friends. He had also joined WhatsApp groups of drug users and discussed matters related to drugs. According to the police, he shared details such as the location and time for drug consumption in these groups. The duo was arrested based on their bank transactions, the drugs seized so far, and supporting scientific evidence. Further investigation is under way, the police said. Krishna was first introduced in Mani Ratnam's Anjali. He went on to act in films such as Kazhugu, Vanavarayan Vallavarayan, Vanmam, and Yatchan, which was directed by his brother Vishnuvardhan. He also starred in four thrillers: Yaakkai, Pandigai, Nibunan, and Vizhithiru. His other appearances include Veera, Kalari, and Maari 2. Trafficking, possession, and sale of drugs are punishable offences. It is also considered an offence if individuals with knowledge of someone possessing drugs fail to inform the authorities, the police said. Police sources added that the investigation into the case is likely to widen, and more suspects may be arrested in connection with it. So far, 24 persons have been arrested by the Nungambakkam Police.
Tahawul Tech
3 days ago
- Tahawul Tech
Cloud misconfigurations expose critical data and secrets, says Tenable
9% of publicly exposed cloud storage hold sensitive data, 97% classified as restricted or confidential Dubai — Tenable, the exposure management company, released its 2025 Cloud Security Risk Report, which revealed that 9% of publicly accessible cloud storage contains sensitive data. Ninety-seven per cent of such data is restricted or confidential, creating easy and prime targets for threat actors. Cloud environments face dramatically increased risk due to exposed sensitive data, misconfigurations, underlying vulnerabilities and poorly stored secrets – such as passwords, API keys and credentials. The 2025 Cloud Security Risk Report provides a deep dive into the most prominent cloud security issues impacting data, identity, workload and AI resources and offers practical mitigation strategies to help organizations proactively reduce risk and close critical gaps. Key Findings From The Report Include: ● Secrets Found in Diverse Cloud Resources, Putting Organizations at Risk: Over half of organizations (54%) store at least one secret directly in Amazon Web Services (AWS) Elastic Container Service (ECS) task definitions — creating a direct attack path. Similar issues were found among organizations using Google Cloud Platform (GCP) Cloud Run (52%) and Microsoft Azure Logic Apps workflows (31%). Alarmingly, 3.5% of all AWS Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) instances contain secrets in user data — major risk given how widely EC2 is used. ● Cloud Workload Security Is Improving, But Toxic Combinations Persist: While the number of organizations with a 'toxic cloud trilogy' – a workload that is a publicly exposed, critically vulnerable, and highly privileged – has decreased from 38% to 29%, this dangerous combination still represents a significant and common risk. ● Using Identity Providers (IdPs) Alone Doesn't Eliminate Risk: While 83% of AWS organizations are exercising best practices in using IdP services to manage their cloud identities, overly-permissive defaults, excessive entitlements, and standing permissions still expose them to identity-based threats. 'Despite the security incidents we have witnessed over the past few years, organizations continue to leave critical cloud assets, from sensitive data to secrets, exposed through avoidable misconfigurations,' said Ari Eitan, Director of Cloud Security Research, Tenable. 'The path for attackers is often simple: exploit public access, steal embedded secrets or abuse overprivileged identities. To close these gaps, security teams need full visibility across their environments and the ability to prioritize and automate remediation before threats escalate. 'The cloud demands continuous, proactive risk management, and not reactive patchwork.' The report reflects findings by the Tenable Cloud Research team based on telemetry from workloads across diverse public cloud and enterprise environments, analyzed from October 2024 through March 2025.
New Indian Express
4 days ago
- New Indian Express
Drug bust outcome of probe into multiple cases in Chennai: Cops
CHENNAI: The cocaine bust, which led to the arrest of Tamil film actor Srikanth is the outcome of a detailed investigation against a group of people running an organised crime racket, the Greater Chennai Police (GCP) sources said on Tuesday. Srikanth was arrested on Monday for consumption and possession of a few grams of cocaine and was remanded in judicial custody on Tuesday after being named accused under three sections of the NDPS Act. The GCP's investigation has found that Prasad, a functionary of AIADMK's IT wing, had supplied the drug to the actor. Arrested three weeks ago in an attempt-to-murder case after a brawl outside a Nungambakkam pub, detailed investigation of Prasad's bank accounts, electronic devices and other transactions showed that he had allegedly cheated at least 200 people by taking Rs 2 lakh to Rs 20 lakh from each by promising to get them jobs in government agencies. Two policemen are also under investigation in this case. As per the police, Prasad was also identified as the middleman who procured cocaine from Bengaluru-based Pradeep and Ghana-native John, and sold it to his contacts, like Srikanth, who reportedly used it for house parties. Both Pradeep and John were arrested recently by the GCP and 11 gm of cocaine was seized from them. In addition, the GCP are also investigating Prasad's link to his friend Ajay Vandaiyar who along with his (Ajay), accomplices – Narendra Sethupathy, Chandrasekar, alias Senthil and Sivasankaran – were allegedly involved in fraudulent land deals across the city.
