More schools and other public buildings with structural problems could come to light, Jeremy Hunt says

Published

2 years ago

September 3, 2023

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The chancellor has admitted more schools and other public buildings with structural problems could come to light in the coming weeks.

It comes as the government investigates the extent of problems with crumbling concrete, also known as reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).

RAAC is a type of concrete that has also been used in public buildings, such as hospitals and court buildings.

More than 100 schools and colleges have been told by the Department for Education (DfE) to partially or fully shut buildings – just days before the start of the new school year – over fears about the safety of facilities built with RAAC.

The government has so far identified 156 schools that contain RAAC – with 104 schools or “settings” told to close or partially close, on top of another 50 where mitigations have already been put in place.

Watch and follow Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips live

However, speaking to Sky News’ new politics show Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips Jeremy Hunt admitted that more schools and other public buildings with structural problems could come to light as the government carries out its “exhaustive” programme into the problem.

“Obviously we might find new information in the weeks or months ahead and we will act on it, but in terms of the information we have today we have acted immediately, we will continue to act we will continue to invest,” he said.

The announcement by the DfE that some schools may be forced to close prompted anger from parents and opposition parties, with Labour accusing the government of “staggering incompetence”.

But Mr Hunt defended the government’s response to the issue, saying it would “take action immediately” on any risks – which also include concerns of possible asbestos outbreaks in public buildings.

“As soon as problems have been identified we’ve started a huge survey of every single school in the country so we could identify where these problems are,” he said.

“And I think it’s very important to reassure parents that where there is an issue as soon as we find out about it we will act.”

He added that the government would do “what it takes to make sure that children are safe” and that as chancellor he would “prioritise spending money to sort out these problems where that needs to happen”.

Elsewhere in the programme, Mr Hunt was asked about the state of the British economy after he welcomed figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) which showed that the UK’s economy was 0.6% larger than pre-pandemic levels by the fourth quarter of 2021 and had the third-fastest recovery in the G7 during that period – behind only the US and Canada.

He told Trevor Phillips:

• That despite the economy performing better than expected, he would not have taken a different approach because it was the government’s “priority” to bring down inflation – which peaked at over 11%

• His plan to reform the public sector does not involve “more cuts” and that the government will prioritise reducing debt over increasing borrowing by making public services more efficient and cutting the amount of time frontline staff spend on administrative tasks

• The government believes it is “morally wrong” to leave substantial debt to future generations – as he attacked Labour’s plans to increase borrowing by £100bn”.

Schools impacted by the RAAC crisis have been advised by the government to find space in nearby schools, community centres or even “empty local office buildings”.

Ministers have said such spaces should be utilised for the “first few weeks” while structural supports are installed to mitigate the risk of collapse of structures built with RAAC.

Schools Minister Nick Gibb has pledged to publish the list in “in due course”, while it is understood a full list will only be released by the DfE when all parents are informed and mitigations are in place.

The crisis has prompted Labour to ramp up its calls for the government to reveal the “full extent” of the impact of RAAC, including by publicly listing the schools which have had to close or partially shut.

Also speaking to Trevor Phillips, Labour’s shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson said her party wanted to force a vote to get the government to release the full list of the schools affected.

“Children are going to have to move to alternative accommodation or portable cabins with steel props holding up the ceiling,” she said.

“I don’t think there can be a more defining metaphor for the last 13 years of Conservative government than children sat in classrooms with steel props to stop the ceiling falling in on their heads.”

Politics

Ex-SEC chair, now heading SDNY, offers rebuke in $12M crypto fraud case

Published

5 hours ago

April 24, 2025

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Ex-SEC chair, now heading SDNY, offers rebuke in M crypto fraud case

Jay Clayton, recently appointed interim US Attorney for the Southern District of New York (SDNY) and former chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, has begun offering statements in criminal cases involving crypto fraud.

In an April 23 notice, the US Attorney’s Office said Eugene William Austin, also known as Hugh Austin, had been sentenced to 18 years in prison following his conviction on conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen property. Together with his son, Brandon, sentenced to four years, Austin offered fraudulent crypto investment services, resulting in roughly $12 million in losses to more than 24 people.

“For years, Hugh Austin was the leader of a fraud and money laundering scheme that stole more than $12 million from more than two dozen victims,” said Clayton. “Austin involved his own son in his crimes, working with him to rip off victims and spending investor money on personal expenses, like luxury hotels […] Austin will now be held accountable for the harm he caused to individual investors and others.”

The criminal case involving digital assets marked one of Clayton’s first public statements since becoming the interim US Attorney on April 22. US President Donald Trump nominated Clayton on Jan. 20 when he took office. The district has since seen the resignation of acting US Attorney Danielle Sassoon in response to the Justice Department directing her to halt a case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams.

The nation’s ‘sovereign district’ overseen by a Trump appointee?

Under current law, Clayton can serve as interim US Attorney for the district for 120 days without Senate confirmation. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer blocked a vote on Clayton’s nomination, saying Trump had “no fidelity to the law.”

Clayton will likely oversee SDNY during the sentencing hearing for former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky and potentially other criminal cases involving cryptocurrency. The district is home to Wall Street firms and many of the country’s most prominent financial institutions.

Magazine: SEC’s U-turn on crypto leaves key questions unanswered

Politics

SEC task force met with Trump-supporting firms to discuss crypto regulation

Published

6 hours ago

April 24, 2025

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SEC task force met with Trump-supporting firms to discuss crypto regulation

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) crypto task force, headed by Hester Peirce, has continued meeting with digital asset company representatives as the agency explores regulatory changes.

In an April 24 notice, the SEC task force disclosed a meeting with representatives from crypto firm Ondo Finance and the law firm Davis Polk and Wardwell to discuss “issuing and selling wrapped, tokenized versions of publicly traded US securities.” Ondo Finance donated $1 million to Donald Trump’s inauguration fund, and the law firm announced on April 22 that it would represent the US President’s social media company, Truth Social, to launch crypto-linked exchange-traded funds.

According to the meeting request, Ondo Finance planned to discuss registration requirements for tokenized securities, compliance with financial laws, and potentially launching a regulatory sandbox. Cointelegraph reached out to the firm for comment but did not receive a response at the time of publication.

The April 24 meeting was the latest in the SEC crypto task force’s outreach to the industry following the departure of former chair Gary Gensler. Former commissioner and Trump appointee Paul Atkins took over leadership at the agency on April 21 after his swearing-in ceremony, but has yet to take action on his proposed crypto agenda.

Continuing outreach to industry under new SEC chair

On April 25, the crypto task force will host a roundtable event to discuss custody, including representatives from Kraken, Anchorage Digital Bank, WisdomTree, and others. Following the approval of crypto exchange-traded funds in 2024, many financial institutions have seen demand for digital asset custody in the US grow significantly.

It’s unclear what the SEC’s intentions may be regarding pursuing crypto enforcement cases under Atkins. The commission has stated it will continue cases involving fraudulent activity, but dropped a complaint against Hex founder Richard Heart on April 21.

The agency has already announced it will stop investigations or lawsuits against many firms, including Ripple, Coinbase, and Kraken. All three exchanges donated or had executives who supported Trump’s 2024 campaign or inauguration fund.

Magazine: Trump’s crypto ventures raise conflict of interest, insider trading questions

Politics

The hidden risk of updatable firmware

Published

7 hours ago

April 24, 2025

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The hidden risk of updatable firmware

Opinion by: Igor Zemtsov, chief technology officer at TBCC

Crypto security is a ticking time bomb. Updatable firmware might just be the match that lights the fuse.

Hardware wallets have become the holy grail of self-custody, the ultimate safeguard against hackers, scammers and even government overreach. There’s an inconvenient truth, however, that most people ignore: Firmware updates aren’t just security patches.

They’re potential backdoors, waiting for someone — whether a hacker, a rogue developer or a shady third party — to kick them wide open.

Every time a hardware wallet manufacturer pushes an update, users are forced to make a choice. Hit that update button and hope for the best, or refuse to update and risk using outdated software with unknown vulnerabilities. Either way, it’s a gamble.

In crypto, a bad gamble can mean waking up to an empty wallet.

Firmware updates aren’t always your friend

Updating firmware sounds like common sense. More security! Fewer bugs! Better user experience!

Here’s the thing: Every update is also an opportunity not just for the wallet provider but for anyone with the power, or motivation, to tamper with the process.

Hackers dream of firmware vulnerabilities. A rushed or poorly audited update can introduce tiny, almost imperceptible flaws — ones that sit in the background, waiting for the right moment to drain funds. And the best part? Users will never know what hit them.

Then there’s the more unsettling possibility: deliberate backdoors.

Recent: Hardware wallet Ledger helps competitor Trezor resolve security vulnerability

Tech companies have been forced to include government-mandated surveillance tools before. What makes anyone think hardware wallet makers are exempt? If a regulatory agency — or worse, a criminal organization — wants access to private keys, firmware updates are the perfect attack vector. One hidden function. One disguised line of code.

That’s all it takes. Still think firmware updates are harmless?

Firmware vulnerabilities are already being exploited

This isn’t some far-fetched, doomsday scenario. It has already happened.

Ledger, one of the biggest names in crypto security, had a major security crisis in 2018 when security researcher Saleem Rashid exposed a vulnerability that allowed attackers to replace Ledger Nano S firmware and hijack private keys. Nearly 1 million devices were at risk before a fix was rolled out. The scary part? There was no way for users to know if their devices had already been compromised.

In 2023, OneKey suffered a similar nightmare. White hat hackers demonstrated that its firmware could be cracked in mere seconds. No crypto was lost — this time. But what if real attackers had found the flaw first?

Then came the “Dark Skippy” exploit, taking firmware-based attacks to an entirely new level. With just two signed transactions, hackers could extract a user’s entire seed phrase — without setting off a single alarm. If firmware updates can be manipulated this easily, how can anyone be sure their assets are safe?

The hidden price of updatable firmware

To be fair, not all firmware updates are security disasters. Ledger uses a proprietary operating system and secure element chips for added protection now. Trezor takes an open-source approach, allowing the community to scrutinize its firmware. Coldcard and BitBox02 give users manual control over updates, reducing — but not eliminating — risk.

Here’s the real question: Can users ever be 100% sure that an update won’t introduce a fatal flaw?

Some wallets have decided to eliminate the risk altogether. Tangem ships with fixed, non-updatable firmware, meaning that its code can never be altered once the device leaves the factory. No updates. No patches.

Of course, this approach has its trade-offs. If a vulnerability is discovered, there’s no way to fix it. But in security, predictability matters.

Real crypto security means taking back control

The crypto market was worth $2.79 trillion as of March 2025. With that much money on the table, cybercriminals, rogue insiders and overreaching governments are always looking for weak points. Hardware wallet makers should be laser-focused on security.

Choosing a hardware wallet shouldn’t feel like gambling with private keys. It shouldn’t involve blind trust in a corporation’s ability to push updates responsibly. Users deserve more than vague reassurances. They deserve security models that put control where it belongs — with them.

Security isn’t about convenience. It’s about control. Any system that requires trusting unknown developers, opaque update processes or firmware that can be changed at will? That’s not control. That’s a liability.

The only real way to keep a hardware wallet safe? Remove the guesswork. Strip away the blind trust. Always research the developers’ backgrounds, check their track record for security incidents, and see how they’ve handled past vulnerabilities. Stick to verifiable facts — security should never be based on assumptions.

Opinion by: Igor Zemtsov, chief technology officer at TBCC.

This article is for general information purposes and is not intended to be and should not be taken as legal or investment advice. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed here are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.