https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2024/02/01/dc-cash-payments-mothers-pilot-program/

Gift link: https://wapo.st/3SKVUNG

In 2022, the D.C. government announced a pilot program that offered 132 new and expecting low-income mothers $10,800 over the course of a year — no strings attached — intended to assess how unconditional cash payments could improve their families’ outcomes and economic mobility.

Facilitated by the nonprofit Martha’s Table, the $1.5 million Strong Families, Strong Futures pilot was limited to families in Wards 5, 7 and 8, which contain some of the District’s poorest neighborhoods. The city’s program was based on similar successful cash-transfer pilots that have now been modeled in at least 100 U.S. jurisdictions and drew 1,553 applications in just three weeks, requiring a lottery system to winnow down the final group.

All 132 mothers had to choose whether they wanted 12 monthly payments of $900 or the entire amount immediately in a lump sum, a unique feature of D.C.’s pilot. About 75 percent chose the lump sum — which was better for those also receiving government benefits, for whom monthly payments from the pilot were more likely to be flagged as additional income, potentially affecting their eligibility, said David Lloyd, the deputy chief of programs at Martha’s Table.

The Washington Post spoke to several mothers throughout the year. Some used the funds to set up their first savings account or buy baby formula. Others used it to live the lives they had always dreamed for their families, helping cushion their savings to buy a new home — or just live large for a week: a new hairdo and a trip to Miami with new outfits every day for the children.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/01/business/frozen-russian-assets-ukraine/index.html



London
CNN
—
Russian assets frozen in European accounts are generating billions of dollars in interest payments that could be diverted to help repair Ukraine’s war-torn economy — and the European Union just took a step closer to doing that.

After Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Western countries froze nearly half of Moscow’s foreign reserves — some €300 billion ($327 billion). Around €200 billion ($218 billion) sits in the European Union — mostly at Euroclear, a financial institution that keeps assets safe for banks, exchanges and investors.

EU leaders agreed a crucial $50 billion funding package for Ukraine on Thursday and came closer to finalizing a plan to use the profits piling up in Euroclear’s accounts.

In a statement issued at the end of a summit, EU leaders said “potential revenues could be generated … concerning the use of extraordinary revenues held by private entities stemming directly from the immobilized Central Bank of Russia assets.”

https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/24/tech/hewlett-packard-enterprise-hack-russia-cozy-bear/index.html

New York
CNN
—
Tech firm Hewlett Packard Enterprise says its cloud-based email systems were breached by the same Russian hacking group that compromised some Microsoft email accounts earlier this month.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise, also known as HPE, revealed the breach in a securities filing last week. The incident took place on December 12, 2023, and affected “a small percentage of HPE mailboxes belonging to individuals in our cybersecurity, go-to-market, business segments, and other functions,” the company said.

“The Company, with assistance from external cybersecurity experts, immediately activated our response process to investigate, contain, and remediate the incident, eradicating the activity,” HPE said in the filing.

HPE said in the filing it suspects a group sometimes referred to as “Midnight Blizzard” was responsible for last month’s attack.

The hacking group, which US officials and private experts say has links to Russia’s foreign intelligence service, has gained a reputation as one of the stealthiest and most advanced cyber espionage groups in the world. Private analysts have referred to the group as “Midnight Blizzard” or as part of a group known as “APT29,” among other names.