☕️ Insecure

What you need to know about the Log4J flaw December 15, 2021 [View Online]( | [Sign Up]( | [Shop]( [Morning Brew]( TOGETHER WITH [Athletic Greens]( Good morning. How mainstream is your taste in Christmas music? Compare your faves to the most-streamed Christmas songs on Spotify this holiday season: - “All I Want for Christmas Is You” by Mariah Carey (surprise!) - “Last Christmas” by Wham! - “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” by the Singin’ Santa himself Michael Bublé - “Jingle Bell Rock” by Bobby Helms - “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” by Brenda Lee (great sax solo) —Jamie Wilde, Max Knoblauch, Neal Freyman MARKETS Nasdaq 15,237.64 -1.14% S&P 4,634.09 -0.75% Dow 35,544.18 -0.30% 10-Year 1.439% +2.5 bps Bitcoin $47,343.03 +1.36% Uber $37.27 +4.31% *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 4:00pm ET. [Here's what these numbers mean.]( - Markets: Stocks [stumbled]( yesterday as investors anxiously await an update from the Fed this afternoon. Uber shares bucked the trend after CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said the company had its “[best week ever](” for overall gross bookings, which encompasses its ride-sharing and delivery units. - Economy: The Fed will make a big announcement today about its inflation-fighting strategy. Fresh data released yesterday—showing that producer prices rose at their [fastest pace]( on record—will put even more pressure on the central bank to wind down its stimulus measures quickly and chart out a plan to hike interest rates. CYBERSECURITY [Companies Feel Extra Insecure Ahead of the Holidays]( [A computer getting hacked](Francis Scialabba A piece of faulty software called Log4J has exposed major companies to over 1.2 million cyberattacks since last Friday, according to researchers. It’s already one of the [most wide-reaching]( security breaches ever, and it could take years to fully fix. Awake yet? The little-known but widely used Log4J software helps major companies, including Amazon, Apple, Tesla, IBM, and Twitter, log and track user activity across a range of applications. Now, cyberattackers are using it as a crowbar to break into computers. Once in, hackers can: - Extract sensitive data. - Mine crypto. - Join the computer to a “botnet”—a system of interconnected computers used to mass-send spam and perform other nefarious actions. So far, the only company known to have been breached via Log4J is Microsoft, which had its servers for the video game Minecraft [hijacked](. Other companies are currently in investigation mode, so the full fallout is unknown. Who’s getting fired over this goof? No one. Log4J was maintained by a team of volunteers who in their free time code for the nonprofit Apache Software Foundation. It’s one of dozens of open-source, volunteer-run organizations that create the free software that [underpins]( most major companies’ operations. So maybe blame it on the volunteers’ day jobs that, despite the flaw reportedly existing since 2013, the team wasn’t aware of it until an Alibaba employee sent a warning on Nov. 24. Within weeks, the code was out of the bag: Details of the flaw surfaced in conversations on Chinese social network WeChat and shortly after became global news. What now? The volunteer team has already created a patch to fix the issue, but corporate software engineers have to adapt and deploy the update. Plus, hackers who walked into servers through the Log4J door likely broke some windows while in there, allowing them to circumvent the first patch. Big picture: The US government had already [warned]( companies last month to stay extra vigilant against online attacks ahead of the holidays, a popular period for hackers to strike.—JW �  �  �  mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20this%20story%20from%20Morning%20Brew%21&body=Companies%20Feel%20Extra%20Insecure%20Ahead%20of%20the%20Holidays%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fstories%2F2021%2F12%2F14%2Fa-software-flaw-exposes-major-companies-servers%3Futm_campaign%3Dmb%26utm_medium%3Dnewsletter%26utm_source%3Dmorning_brew%26mid%3D{{md5%28profile.email%29}}%26uid%3DhtwfLgmyDtkWRTXRTk6KksLR%0A%0AWant%20more%20great%20content%3F%20Subscribe%20to%20Daily%20Brew%20%E2%80%94%20Delivering%20the%20latest%20business%20news%20from%20Wall%20St.%20to%20Silicon%20Valley%2C%20daily.%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fr%2F%3Fkid%3Da905682a%26utm_source%3Demail_share%0A COVID [Covid Speed Round]( [A sign saying "mask up for Xmas" in Britain](Christopher Furlong/Getty Images Omicron in the US: Omicron [accounts for 3%]( of sequenced Covid-19 cases in the US, and it’s expected to keep spreading beyond the 33 states it’s already been found in, the CDC said. But Delta remains the dominant variant, making up 96% of sequenced cases in the country. School’s out: Cornell is [closing]( its campus in Ithaca, NY, and moving all of its final exams online after observing the “rapid spread” of Covid-19 among its student body. iMask: Apple is [mandating]( that shoppers wear masks at its stores nationwide. The UK relaxes its travel ban: It’s taken 11 countries in southern Africa off its “travel red list,” saying there’s [no point]( in banning travel when Omicron is already spreading widely across the world. Sports disrupted: Professional leagues including the NBA, NHL, and English Premier League have [postponed games]( in recent days due to Covid outbreaks. 37 NFL players tested positive for Covid on Monday (the highest single-day total since the pandemic began) and the league is now requiring coaches and some other staff to get a booster shot by Dec. 27.—NF �  �  �  mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20this%20story%20from%20Morning%20Brew%21&body=Covid%20Speed%20Round%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fstories%2F2021%2F12%2F14%2Fomicron-speed-round%3Futm_campaign%3Dmb%26utm_medium%3Dnewsletter%26utm_source%3Dmorning_brew%26mid%3D{{md5%28profile.email%29}}%26uid%3DhtwfLgmyDtkWRTXRTk6KksLR%0A%0AWant%20more%20great%20content%3F%20Subscribe%20to%20Daily%20Brew%20%E2%80%94%20Delivering%20the%20latest%20business%20news%20from%20Wall%20St.%20to%20Silicon%20Valley%2C%20daily.%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fr%2F%3Fkid%3Da905682a%26utm_source%3Demail_share%0A LABOR [America's Saddest Home Videos]( [South Dakota teachers scramble for one dollar bills at a hockey game.](Twitter/@annietodd96 So let’s get this straight: a video featuring local teachers scrambling [on their hands and knees]( for $5,000 in one-dollar bills to use on classroom supplies was posted online and people didn’t love it? The “dash for cash” stunt—which has received nearly 20 million views on Twitter—took place at a South Dakota junior ice hockey game last Saturday. Ten teachers (out of 31 who applied) competed in the dystopian event, stuffing their shirts with dollar bills. Teacher takeaways ranged from $376 to $616. Critics called the event “humiliating”—a gamification of economic inequality à la Squid Game. The dash for cash was criticized for making light of a bleak American reality, similar to the game show Paid Off, in which contestants with enormous amounts of student debt compete to have it wiped out. The reality in this case: South Dakota ranks 50th in the nation for teacher pay. The mea culpa: In a joint statement, the home team and the local mortgage lender that funded the event apologized and acknowledged that it seemed degrading to the teaching profession. They’ve since pledged an additional $500 each to all teachers involved, including the applicants who didn’t compete.—MK �  �  �  mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20this%20story%20from%20Morning%20Brew%21&body=America%27s%20Saddest%20Home%20Videos%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fstories%2Fteacher-cash-grab-draws-major-criticism%3Futm_campaign%3Dmb%26utm_medium%3Dnewsletter%26utm_source%3Dmorning_brew%26mid%3D{{md5%28profile.email%29}}%26uid%3DhtwfLgmyDtkWRTXRTk6KksLR%0A%0AWant%20more%20great%20content%3F%20Subscribe%20to%20Daily%20Brew%20%E2%80%94%20Delivering%20the%20latest%20business%20news%20from%20Wall%20St.%20to%20Silicon%20Valley%2C%20daily.%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fr%2F%3Fkid%3Da905682a%26utm_source%3Demail_share%0A TOGETHER WITH ATHLETIC GREENS [Putting the Green in Your Routine](#) [Athletic Greens]( You know the saying, New Year, New You? Welp, it seems that kind of resolution often evaporates after January. Good news is, we bring you the only health-minded resolution you’ll need, and one that’s easy to stick to: [AG1 by Athletic Greens](. Want to make time for healthy habits in the new year and beyond? AG1 is an all-in-one nutritional powder that makes getting all your nutrients more convenient than ever before. We’re talkin’ just one daily scoop to support your immunity, gut health, energy, and healthy aging. AG1 contains over 75 essential vitamins, minerals, and whole-food sourced ingredients to give you a multivitamin, probiotic, prebiotic, adaptogens, and more. Oh, and it tastes delish. How’s that for a resolution routine that actually sticks? [Try AG1 today, and get a year’s supply of Vitamin D and five travel packs for free](. GRAB BAG [Key Performance Indicators]( [Michael Scott talking about God ](Giphy Stat: 63% of US adults [identify as Christians](, down considerably from 78% in 2007, according to a new Pew survey on religion in America. 29% of US adults say they have no religion at all, up from 16% in 2007. “The secularizing trends that have been evident for a long time show no signs of slowing, certainly no signs of reversing,” Greg Smith, the author of the study, said. Quote: “More befitting the Mediterranean than the Arctic.” The UN confirmed a temperature reading of [100.4 Fahrenheit]( taken last summer in the Russian town of Verkhoyansk—a new record high for the Arctic. The Arctic region is warming more than 2x faster than the global average, the UN said. Read: Inside Tinder’s wild $441 million breakup. ([Morning Brew]() �  �  �  mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20this%20story%20from%20Morning%20Brew%21&body=Key%20Performance%20Indicators%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fstories%2F2021%2F12%2F14%2Fkey-performance-indicators-december-15%3Futm_campaign%3Dmb%26utm_medium%3Dnewsletter%26utm_source%3Dmorning_brew%26mid%3D{{md5%28profile.email%29}}%26uid%3DhtwfLgmyDtkWRTXRTk6KksLR%0A%0AWant%20more%20great%20content%3F%20Subscribe%20to%20Daily%20Brew%20%E2%80%94%20Delivering%20the%20latest%20business%20news%20from%20Wall%20St.%20to%20Silicon%20Valley%2C%20daily.%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fr%2F%3Fkid%3Da905682a%26utm_source%3Demail_share%0A ECONOMY [What Your Inflation Take Says About You]( Expectations around inflation tend to fluctuate depending on factors like age, income, and Hogwarts house (OK, not that one)—and the differences can be pretty significant. The November results of the New York Fed’s [Survey of Consumer Expectations](—which measures what different groups think the median inflation rate will be in three years—revealed that Americans... - Under 40: expect inflation to hit 3.5% - Over 60: expect inflation to hit 4.7% - Making less than $50k: expect inflation to hit 4.4% - Making more than $100k: expect inflation to hit 3.4% Why the big difference? Because we all live in different circumstances. More so than the youths, older Americans tend to rely on fixed incomes and personal savings, which suffer disproportionately from inflation. Similarly, an increase in the price of everyday goods hurts lower-income people more than those with higher salaries. Zoom out: Inflation expectations are watched closely by economists because, for instance, if workers anticipate prices will rise in the future, then they may rally for higher wages, which in turn could generate more inflation. The Fed will try to manage those expectations with its big policy update later today.—MK �  �  �  mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20this%20story%20from%20Morning%20Brew%21&body=What%20Your%20Inflation%20Take%20Says%20About%20You%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fstories%2F2021%2F12%2F14%2Fwhat-your-inflation-take-says-about-you%3Futm_campaign%3Dmb%26utm_medium%3Dnewsletter%26utm_source%3Dmorning_brew%26mid%3D{{md5%28profile.email%29}}%26uid%3DhtwfLgmyDtkWRTXRTk6KksLR%0A%0AWant%20more%20great%20content%3F%20Subscribe%20to%20Daily%20Brew%20%E2%80%94%20Delivering%20the%20latest%20business%20news%20from%20Wall%20St.%20to%20Silicon%20Valley%2C%20daily.%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fr%2F%3Fkid%3Da905682a%26utm_source%3Demail_share%0A WHAT ELSE IS BREWING - [Congress]( voted to raise the debt ceiling by $2.5 trillion, just one day before the US potentially would have defaulted on its IOUs. - [Domino effect](: Employees at two Starbucks locations in the Boston area filed for union elections after workers at three Buffalo-area Starbucks locations voted to unionize last week. - [Dogecoin prices]( spiked up to 40% at one point yesterday after Elon Musk said Tesla will accept the token as payment for some merch. - [Goldman Sachs]( could increase its bonus pool for investment banking by 50% this year, and JPMorgan could juice theirs by 40%, per Bloomberg. BREW'S BETS So much crypto. With eToro, you can browse over twenty cryptocurrencies and even experiment with a virtual portfolio before opening your e-wallet. Even better, eToro will give you $10 when you invest in $100 of crypto. [Learn more and get $10 here](.* What’s on your 2022 career checklist? If you’ve got a new salary, new title, and new opportunities on your list, you need to sign up for the CMA® (Certified Management Accountant) certification. Make a BOLD career move in 2022 and [enroll in the CMA today](.* The internet is breaking our brains. Crooked Media’s weekly series Offline with Jon Favreau examines society’s online habits and explores ways we can regain control over our hyperconnected world. [Listen now](. The 2021 retrospectives are coming fast and furious: Here is the [year in groceries](, China’s [top buzzwords and internet slang](, the [best films of 2021](, and a recap of [noteworthy events](. Nic Cage playing Nic Cage: [Sign us up](. *This is sponsored advertising content GAMES [The Puzzle Section](#) Word Search: Connect ugly Christmas sweater designs to famous movies and TV shows in today’s puzzle. [Play it here](. 2020 or 2021? The final two years have been...how should we say this...a bit of a blur. We’ll give you a notable event and you have to figure out whether it happened in 2020 or 2021. - The first Covid vaccine dose was administered - The storming of the Capitol building - Prince Harry and Meghan Markle said they would “step back” from the British royal family - The Brood X cicada emergence - Strange monoliths were discovered in Utah, California, and Romania - Bill and Melinda Gates announced their divorce - Italy beat England at the Euro soccer tournament SHARE THE BREW We think you should [share the Brew.]( Not only is it a smart thing to do for your friends, it’s also the smartest way to get showered in free Brew swag. Your referral count: 0 [Click to Share]( Or copy & paste your referral link to others: [morningbrew.com/daily/r/?kid=a905682a]( ANSWER 1) 2020 2) 2021 3) 2020 4) 2021 5) 2020 6) 2021 7) 2021 ✤ A Note From eToro eToro USA LLC; Investments are subject to market risk, including the possible loss of principal. This promotion is available in the USA only. � � � � � Written by [Neal Freyman](, [Jamie Wilde](, and [Max Knoblauch]( Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. WANT MORE BREW? 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