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Enigma of Lone Wolf Terrorism

US agencies should use advanced technology to identify mysterious drones, Schumer says"Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum." Section 1.10.32 of "de Finibus Bonorum et Malorum", written by Cicero in 45 BC "Sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus error sit voluptatem accusantium doloremque laudantium, totam rem aperiam, eaque ipsa quae ab illo inventore veritatis et quasi architecto beatae vitae dicta sunt explicabo. Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt. Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit, sed quia non numquam eius modi tempora incidunt ut labore et dolore magnam aliquam quaerat voluptatem. Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam, nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur? Quis autem vel eum iure reprehenderit qui in ea voluptate velit esse quam nihil molestiae consequatur, vel illum qui dolorem eum fugiat quo voluptas nulla pariatur?" 1914 translation by H. Rackham "But I must explain to you how all this mistaken idea of denouncing pleasure and praising pain was born and I will give you a complete account of the system, and expound the actual teachings of the great explorer of the truth, the master-builder of human happiness. No one rejects, dislikes, or avoids pleasure itself, because it is pleasure, but because those who do not know how to pursue pleasure rationally encounter consequences that are extremely painful. Nor again is there anyone who loves or pursues or desires to obtain pain of itself, because it is pain, but because occasionally circumstances occur in which toil and pain can procure him some great pleasure. To take a trivial example, which of us ever undertakes laborious physical exercise, except to obtain some advantage from it? But who has any right to find fault with a man who chooses to enjoy a pleasure that has no annoying consequences, or one who avoids a pain that produces no resultant pleasure?" 1914 translation by H. Rackham "But I must explain to you how all this mistaken idea of denouncing pleasure and praising pain was born and I will give you a complete account of the system, and expound the actual teachings of the great explorer of the truth, the master-builder of human happiness. No one rejects, dislikes, or avoids pleasure itself, because it is pleasure, but because those who do not know how to pursue pleasure rationally encounter consequences that are extremely painful. Nor again is there anyone who loves or pursues or desires to obtain pain of itself, because it is pain, but because occasionally circumstances occur in which toil and pain can procure him some great pleasure. To take a trivial example, which of us ever undertakes laborious physical exercise, except to obtain some advantage from it? But who has any right to find fault with a man who chooses to enjoy a pleasure that has no annoying consequences, or one who avoids a pain that produces no resultant pleasure?" To keep reading, please log in to your account, create a free account, or simply fill out the form below.

OpenAI and military defense technology company Anduril Industries said Wednesday that they would work together to use artificial intelligence for "national security missions." The ChatGPT-maker and Anduril will focus on improving defenses against drone attacks, the companies said in a joint release. The partnership comes nearly a year after OpenAI did away with wording in its policies that banned use of its technology for military or warfare purposes. Founded in 2017, Anduril is a technology company that builds command and control systems and a variety of drones, counting the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom among its customers, according to its website. OpenAI said in October that it was collaborating with the US military's research arm DARPA on cyber defenses for critical networks. "AI is a transformational technology that can be used to strengthen democratic values or to undermine them," OpenAI said in a post at the time. "With the proper safeguards, AI can help protect people, deter adversaries, and even prevent future conflict." The companies said the deal would help the United States maintain an edge over China, a goal that OpenAI chief Sam Altman has spoken of in the past. "Our partnership with Anduril will help ensure OpenAI technology protects US military personnel, and will help the national security community understand and responsibly use this technology to keep our citizens safe and free," Altman said in Wednesday's release. Anduril was co-founded by Palmer Luckey, after Facebook bought his previous company Oculus VR in a $2 billion deal. The new partnership will bring together OpenAI's advanced AI models with Anduril systems and software, according to the companies. "Our partnership with OpenAI will allow us to utilize their world-class expertise in artificial intelligence to address urgent Air Defense capability gaps across the world," Anduril co-founder and chief executive Brian Schimpf said in the release. Schimpf said the collaboration would allow "military and intelligence operators to make faster, more accurate decisions in high-pressure situations." gc/ahaJet crash disaster in South Korea marks another setback for Boeing

Donald Trump on Sunday attacked someone he said he considers a "friend," calling out former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy for what the president-elect says is "one of the dumbest political decisions made in years." McCarthy was booted from his position heading the House Republicans after former GOP lawmaker Matt Gaetz and others voted for his removal. After an extended process of votes for a new Speaker, the Republicans ultimately selected Mike Johnson , who was relatively unknown at the time. On Sunday, Trump weighed in on a move by McCarthy when McCarthy was still in power. ALSO READ: Poor Trump supporters are about to get a rude awakening — but we shouldn't be celebrating "The extension of the Debt Ceiling by a previous Speaker of the House, a good man and a friend of mine, from this past September of the Biden Administration, to June of the Trump Administration, will go down as one of the dumbest political decisions made in years," Trump said. "There was no reason to do it - NOTHING WAS GAINED, and we got nothing for it - A major reason why that Speakership was lost." Trump then added, "It was Biden’s problem, not ours." "Now it becomes ours. I call it '1929' because the Democrats don’t care what our Country may be forced into. In fact, they would prefer 'Depression' as long as it hurt the Republican Party," he said next. "The Democrats must be forced to take a vote on this treacherous issue NOW, during the Biden Administration, and not in June. They should be blamed for this potential disaster, not the Republicans!"Renuka Rayasam | (TNS) KFF Health News In April, just 12 weeks into her pregnancy, Kathleen Clark was standing at the receptionist window of her OB-GYN’s office when she was asked to pay $960, the total the office estimated she would owe after she delivered. Clark, 39, was shocked that she was asked to pay that amount during this second prenatal visit. Normally, patients receive the bill after insurance has paid its part, and for pregnant women that’s usually only when the pregnancy ends. It would be months before the office filed the claim with her health insurer. Clark said she felt stuck. The Cleveland, Tennessee, obstetrics practice was affiliated with a birthing center where she wanted to deliver. Plus, she and her husband had been wanting to have a baby for a long time. And Clark was emotional, because just weeks earlier her mother had died. “You’re standing there at the window, and there’s people all around, and you’re trying to be really nice,” recalled Clark, through tears. “So, I paid it.” On online baby message boards and other social media forums , pregnant women say they are being asked by their providers to pay out-of-pocket fees earlier than expected. The practice is legal, but patient advocacy groups call it unethical. Medical providers argue that asking for payment up front ensures they get compensated for their services. How frequently this happens is hard to track because it is considered a private transaction between the provider and the patient. Therefore, the payments are not recorded in insurance claims data and are not studied by researchers. Patients, medical billing experts, and patient advocates say the billing practice causes unexpected anxiety at a time of already heightened stress and financial pressure. Estimates can sometimes be higher than what a patient might ultimately owe and force people to fight for refunds if they miscarry or the amount paid was higher than the final bill. Up-front payments also create hurdles for women who may want to switch providers if they are unhappy with their care. In some cases, they may cause women to forgo prenatal care altogether, especially in places where few other maternity care options exist. It’s “holding their treatment hostage,” said Caitlin Donovan, a senior director at the Patient Advocate Foundation . Medical billing and women’s health experts believe OB-GYN offices adopted the practice to manage the high cost of maternity care and the way it is billed for in the U.S. When a pregnancy ends, OB-GYNs typically file a single insurance claim for routine prenatal care, labor, delivery, and, often, postpartum care. That practice of bundling all maternity care into one billing code began three decades ago, said Lisa Satterfield, senior director of health and payment policy at the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists . But such bundled billing has become outdated, she said. Previously, pregnant patients had been subject to copayments for each prenatal visit, which might lead them to skip crucial appointments to save money. But the Affordable Care Act now requires all commercial insurers to fully cover certain prenatal services. Plus, it’s become more common for pregnant women to switch providers, or have different providers handle prenatal care, labor, and delivery — especially in rural areas where patient transfers are common. Some providers say prepayments allow them to spread out one-time payments over the course of the pregnancy to ensure that they are compensated for the care they do provide, even if they don’t ultimately deliver the baby. “You have people who, unfortunately, are not getting paid for the work that they do,” said Pamela Boatner, who works as a midwife in a Georgia hospital. While she believes women should receive pregnancy care regardless of their ability to pay, she also understands that some providers want to make sure their bill isn’t ignored after the baby is delivered. New parents might be overloaded with hospital bills and the costs of caring for a new child, and they may lack income if a parent isn’t working, Boatner said. In the U.S., having a baby can be expensive. People who obtain health insurance through large employers pay an average of nearly $3,000 out-of-pocket for pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum care, according to the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker . In addition, many people are opting for high-deductible health insurance plans, leaving them to shoulder a larger share of the costs. Of the 100 million U.S. people with health care debt, 12% attribute at least some of it to maternity care, according to a 2022 KFF poll . Families need time to save money for the high costs of pregnancy, childbirth, and child care, especially if they lack paid maternity leave, said Joy Burkhard , CEO of the Policy Center for Maternal Mental Health, a Los Angeles-based policy think tank. Asking them to prepay “is another gut punch,” she said. “What if you don’t have the money? Do you put it on credit cards and hope your credit card goes through?” Calculating the final costs of childbirth depends on multiple factors, such as the timing of the pregnancy , plan benefits, and health complications, said Erin Duffy , a health policy researcher at the University of Southern California’s Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics. The final bill for the patient is unclear until a health plan decides how much of the claim it will cover, she said. But sometimes the option to wait for the insurer is taken away. During Jamie Daw’s first pregnancy in 2020, her OB-GYN accepted her refusal to pay in advance because Daw wanted to see the final bill. But in 2023, during her second pregnancy, a private midwifery practice in New York told her that since she had a high-deductible plan, it was mandatory to pay $2,000 spread out with monthly payments. Daw, a health policy researcher at Columbia University, delivered in September 2023 and got a refund check that November for $640 to cover the difference between the estimate and the final bill. “I study health insurance,” she said. “But, as most of us know, it’s so complicated when you’re really living it.” While the Affordable Care Act requires insurers to cover some prenatal services, it doesn’t prohibit providers from sending their final bill to patients early. It would be a challenge politically and practically for state and federal governments to attempt to regulate the timing of the payment request, said Sabrina Corlette , a co-director of the Center on Health Insurance Reforms at Georgetown University. Medical lobbying groups are powerful and contracts between insurers and medical providers are proprietary. Because of the legal gray area, Lacy Marshall , an insurance broker at Rapha Health and Life in Texas, advises clients to ask their insurer if they can refuse to prepay their deductible. Some insurance plans prohibit providers in their network from requiring payment up front. If the insurer says they can refuse to pay up front, Marshall said, she tells clients to get established with a practice before declining to pay, so that the provider can’t refuse treatment. Related Articles Health | Which health insurance plan may be right for you? Health | California case is the first confirmed bird flu infection in a US child Health | Sharyl Attkisson: The raw milk debate, and a Maryland farm owner who says it’s good for you Health | Your cool black kitchenware could be slowly poisoning you, study says. Here’s what to do Health | Does fluoride cause cancer, IQ loss, and more? Fact-checking Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s claims Clark said she met her insurance deductible after paying for genetic testing, extra ultrasounds, and other services out of her health care flexible spending account. Then she called her OB-GYN’s office and asked for a refund. “I got my spine back,” said Clark, who had previously worked at a health insurer and a medical office. She got an initial check for about half the $960 she originally paid. In August, Clark was sent to the hospital after her blood pressure spiked. A high-risk pregnancy specialist — not her original OB-GYN practice — delivered her son, Peter, prematurely via emergency cesarean section at 30 weeks. It was only after she resolved most of the bills from the delivery that she received the rest of her refund from the other OB-GYN practice. This final check came in October, just days after Clark brought Peter home from the hospital, and after multiple calls to the office. She said it all added stress to an already stressful period. “Why am I having to pay the price as a patient?” she said. “I’m just trying to have a baby.” ©2024 KFF Health News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder won their 11th straight game, beating the short-handed Memphis Grizzlies 130-106 on Sunday night in a matchup of Western Conference leaders that turned lopsided before halftime. Rookie Ajay Mitchell scored 17 points, Aaron Wiggins contributed 16 and Jalen Williams added 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Thunder (26-5), who opened a five-game lead over second-place Memphis. Gilgeous-Alexander made 14 of 19 shots to go along with seven assists, six rebounds and a team-high four blocks. He sat most of the fourth quarter. Oklahoma City blocked nine shots, including three by center Isaiah Hartenstein. The Thunder led 76-50 at halftime behind 23 points from Gilgeous-Alexander and 12 each from Mitchell and Kenrich Williams, who combined to go 5 for 7 on 3-point shots. Oklahoma City outscored the Grizzlies 42-19 in the second quarter to take control. Desmond Bane had 22 points and nine rebounds for Memphis (22-11), which played without star Ja Morant (shoulder) and Zach Edey, the team’s No. 9 overall draft pick, who was in concussion protocol. Jay Huff added 17 points but Jaren Jackson Jr., the team's leading scorer at 21.9 points per game, managed 13 points on 3-of-17 shooting. Takeaways Grizzlies: Memphis jumped out to a 9-0 lead but struggled to score after that, making 37 of 97 shots from the field (38.1%) and 14 of 51 from 3-point range (27.5%). Thunder: Oklahoma City lost the rebound battle 51-46, but outscored the Grizzlies 56-36 in the paint. Key moment Memphis pulled within 42-36 on a jumper by Jackson, but Oklahoma City went on a 32-9 run to extend the lead to 74-45 and put the game out of reach before halftime. Key stat Oklahoma City converted 21 Memphis turnovers into 33 points. Up next Grizzlies: Visit Phoenix on Tuesday night. Thunder: Host Minnesota on Tuesday night. ___ AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba Tim Willert, The Associated PressSchools deploying drones as academic tool, even as they sometimes raise suspicion

( MENAFN - EIN Presswire) Pharmaceutical Water Global market Report 2024 - Market Size, Trends, And Global Forecast 2024-2033 The Business Research Company's Early Year-End Sale! Get up to 30% off detailed market research reports-for a limited time only! LONDON, GREATER LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM, December 16, 2024 /EINPresswire / -- The Business Research Company's Early Year-End Sale! Get up to 30% off detailed market research reports-limited time only! The pharmaceutical water market has seen impressive growth in recent years and is projected to escalate from $34.09 billion in 2023 to $37.61 billion in 2024, reflecting a compound annual growth rate CAGR of 10.3%. This growth during the historical period can be attributed to an uptick in demand for high-quality water, and augmented production of biologics and biosimilars. Will the Pharmaceutical Water Market Continue to Grow in Future? Yes, it will. The size of the pharmaceutical water market is expected to witness rapid growth in future years. It is projected to escalate to $56.31 billion in 2028 at a compound annual growth rate CAGR of 10.6%. The growth during the forecast period will be driven by stricter regulations mandating quality and compliance, increased outsourcing of pharmaceutical manufacturing among other factors. Gain insights into this blooming market: What is Driving the Growth of the Pharmaceutical Water Market? The pharmaceutical water market is expected to gain significant momentum due to increased demand from the biotechnology industry. Biotechnology harnesses biological processes to develop products and technologies that benefit society. The need for pharmaceutical water in the biotechnology industry has risen due to advancements in genetic engineering and research techniques. Pharmaceutical water ensures biotech products are safe, effective, and compliant with regulatory standards. Evaluate the competition with an in-depth report: What Key Players Are Driving the Pharmaceutical Water Market? The pharmaceutical water market's growth is spurred on by key players including Merck & Co. Inc., Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., Danaher Corporation, Ecolab Inc., and Baxter International Inc. Others major participants include B. Braun Melsungen AG, Xylem Inc., Sartorius AG, Pentair PLC, and Waters Corporation, among others. What is Paving the Way for Innovations in the Pharmaceutical Water Market? Major players in the pharmaceutical waters market are focusing on product innovation, such as water for Injection WFI, to improve water purification process efficiency. Water for Injection WFI is a product that meets the highest purity standards for producing injectable medications. In what sectors is Pharmaceutical Water used? The pharmaceutical water market's applications are diverse: 1 By Product Type: Highly Purified Water, Water For Injection, Water For Inhalation, Deionized Water, Distilled Water, Other Product Types 2 By Application: Drug Formulation, Cleaning And Purification, Cell Culture Production, Equipment Cleaning, Buffers And Solutions, Other Applications 3 By End User: Pharmaceutical And Biotechnology Companies, Contract Research And Manufacturing Organizations, Academics And Research Laboratories, Hospitals And Healthcare Facilities, Diagnostic Laboratories, Other End-Users What does the Regional Market Outlook Look Like? In 2023, North America dominated the pharmaceutical water market as the largest regional player. Meanwhile, Asia-Pacific is poised to be the fastest-growing region in the future. The regions covered in the report are Asia-Pacific, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North America, South America, Middle East, and Africa. 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If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.Cowboys' Micah Parsons Comments on How Dallas Can Regroup From Disappointing 2024 SeasonConcerns over the extent of China-backed Salt Typhoon's intrusions into US telecom networks have prompted the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the National Security Agency (NSA), and the FBI to issue guidance to the sector on addressing the threat. The detailed recommendations come as officials from the authoring agencies this week described victims of the attack — which include Verizon, AT&T, and Lumen — as still working to eradicate the threat actor from their networks. "We cannot say with certainty that the adversary has been evicted, because we still don't know the scope of what they're doing," Jeff Greene, executive assistant director for cybersecurity at CISA, said in a media call this week. "I have confidence that we are on top of it in terms of tracking them down and seeing what's going on, but we cannot, with confidence, say that we know everything," Greene said, according to a transcript of the media call that CISA made available to Dark Reading. Given where most victims are in their investigations, it is "impossible" to predict a timeframe for when they will complete fully evicting the threat actor, he said. Several security experts consider Salt Typhoon's attacks on US telecom infrastructure as one of the most egregious cyber espionage campaigns ever in size and scope. It's unknown how many companies the threat actor has compromised as part of the campaign so far, but known victims include some of the biggest telecom providers in the country, including AT&T and Verizon. The attacks enabled multiple activities, including theft of a large number of call detail records — such as a caller's and receiver's phone numbers, call duration, call type, and cell tower location — of telecom customers. In a smaller number of instances, Salt Typhoon used its presence on telecom provider networks to intercept calls and messages of targeted individuals, which include government officials and politicians. Separately, the threat actor also collected information on an unknown number of individuals who were the subjects of legal national security and law enforcement intercepts . "The continued investigation into the PRC targeting commercial telecom infrastructure has revealed a broad and significant cyber-espionage campaign," an FBI official said on background during this week's media call. "We have identified that PRC-affiliated cyber actors have compromised networks of multiple telecom companies to enable multiple activities. The new guidance for addressing the threat includes recommendations for quickly detecting Salt Typhoon activity, improving visibility, reducing existing vulnerabilities, eliminating common misconfigurations, and limiting the attack surface. The guidelines include a section devoted to hardening Cisco network gear, which the authoring agencies described as a popular target for the attacker in the ongoing campaign. "Right now, the hardening guidance that we put out specifically would make the activities that we've seen across the victims much harder to continue," Greene said. "In some cases, it might result in limiting their access." He described Salt Typhoon actors as employing a variety of tactics to breach victim networks, so response and mitigation approaches will differ on a case by case basis. "These are not cookie-cutter compromises in terms of how deeply compromised a victim might be, or what the actor has been able to do." Green and the FBI official on the media call recommended that individuals concerned about the privacy of their mobile device communications should consider using encrypted messaging apps — examples of which would include WhatsApp and Signal — and encrypted voice communications. "People looking to further protect their mobile device communications would benefit from considering using a cellphone that automatically receives timely operating system updates, responsibly managed encryption, and phishing resistant MFA for email, social media, and collaboration tools," the FBI official said. Trey Ford, chief information security officer (CISO) at Bugcrowd pointed to phishing-resistant multifactor authentication in the new guidance as something that organizations should consider prioritizing. "Everything we can do to raise the cost and work factor for malicious actors and nation state communities helps," he notes. He also recommends that organizations add encryption to all traffic crossing third-party communications infrastructure and leverage apps like WhatsApp and Signal where it makes sense. "Also, I would recommend adding a second factor of authentication, something stronger than SMS, such as Yubikeys, Apple's Secure Element, or pseudo-random code generators like Google Authenticator, Authy, [and] Duo, to all of your online accounts." Chris Pierson, CEO and founder of Blackcloak, perceives the new hardening advice as useful in helping companies in the telecom sector prioritize their controls, remediation, and ongoing assessment activity. The advice to individual consumers and business executives to protect against Salt Typhoon is useful as well, he notes: "From tips on using security messaging as opposed to text/SMS, reducing the likelihood of SIM swapping by using a SIM PIN, and implementing dual factor authentication on key accounts, the guidance makes it easier for key executives and highly targeted persons to protect themselves." Jai Vijayan is a seasoned technology reporter with over 20 years of experience in IT trade journalism. He was most recently a Senior Editor at Computerworld, where he covered information security and data privacy issues for the publication. Over the course of his 20-year career at Computerworld, Jai also covered a variety of other technology topics, including big data, Hadoop, Internet of Things, e-voting, and data analytics. Prior to Computerworld, Jai covered technology issues for The Economic Times in Bangalore, India. Jai has a Master's degree in Statistics and lives in Naperville, Ill.

NEW YORK -- A New Jersey family on Sunday marked the birthday of their son, Edan Alexander, who is among the hostages still being held by Hamas . They gathered in Central Park and solemnly sang "Happy Birthday" in Hebrew for now 21-year-old, who was 19 when he was captured by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023. "This is a day that should be filled with joy and celebration, but instead we are marked by pain and worry," father Adi Alexander said. Edan Alexander, a swimmer, Boy Scout, and Knicks fan from Tenafly, joined the Israel Defense forces out of high school. Since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, families have gathered periodically in Central Park to call for the release of hostages . On Sunday, his mother, Yael Alexander, focused on staying positive. "So we have a restaurant that we go to for every celebration with the kids. So definitely, going for shopping, and that's it, just to spend it with the family," she said. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said on social media Sunday that the Israeli-American should be home with his family, adding, "We will not relent until he is home." Edan Alexander has a younger brother and sister, 13-year-old Roy Alexander and 18-year-old Mika Alexander. His sister said she was thinking of how she'd celebrate if her older brother was home. "We would just go to a restaurant with him and just share fun memories that we have with him," Mika Alexander said. Omer Hortig has known Edan Alexander since the second grade. "He's the type of person that today, on his birthday, he would be having a lot of fun. We'd be going out. I mean, he's turning 21," Hortig said. Edan Alexander's birthday also falls on the fifth night of Hanukkah this year, a time when his family and friends say his absence is certainly felt. "Every night of Hanukkah you light a candle and you're reminded of him and the other hostages and it's usually a very happy holiday. This year, it's not so happy, as well as last year, so I hope it's the last year we have to spend the holiday like this," Hortig said. The last time Edan Alexander's family saw him was in a Hamas propaganda video just after Thanksgiving . They say it gave them hope that he's still alive. His father sent him the same message as he has for the past 450 days. "Stay strong, survive, and you'll be out soon," Adi Alexander said.Investors Eye Taiwan Semiconductor! Huge Shift in Stock Positions.A growing trend has emerged in the aftermath of Florida's historic hurricane season: investors are snatching up hurricane-damaged homes, particularly in neighborhoods like St. Petersburg's Shore Acres. Fox 13 Tampa Bay first reported on this on Dec. 13, highlighting both the opportunities and risks of this phenomenon. While some see this as an opportunity to rebuild and revitalize, others are raising red flags about the quality of repairs – and whether future buyers will unknowingly inherit homes with hidden issues. Don't Miss: Unlock the hidden potential of commercial real estate — This platform allows individuals to invest in commercial real estate offering a 12% target yield with a bonus 1% return boost today! During market downturns, investors are learning that unlike equities, these high-yield real estate notes that pay 7.5% – 9% are protected by resilient assets, buffering against losses. Albert Jasuwan of JAS Builders explained to Fox 13 that many investors are focused on waterfront properties now valued at $800,000 or less. "The main thing investors are focusing on is lifting homes and rebuilding them," Jasuwan said. The emphasis on rebuilding has made these properties attractive to investors hoping to flip them for a profit. In Shore Acres, the numbers tell a clear story. Kevin Batdorf, a local realtor and president of the Shore Acres Civic Association, shared that of the 40 homes sold in the neighborhood since the hurricane, 38 were purchased by investors. "My biggest concern is that investors are going in and, as we say in the business, slapping lipstick on a pig to resell them," Batdorf said. The phrase "slapping lipstick on a pig" highlights concerns that some of these repairs may be superficial, leaving deeper structural or water damage unresolved. See Also: This Jeff Bezos-backed startup will allow you to become a landlord in just 10 minutes, with minimum investments as low as $100 for properties like the Byer House from Stranger Things. For buyers, this could mean costly surprises, particularly when securing insurance for these homes. "The biggest concern is for the person who buys it from the investor because they won't be aware of how bad the damage was and may not be able to get insurance," Batdorf warned. Florida's home insurance market is in a tough spot and recent hurricanes have only worsened things. Homeowners are facing skyrocketing premiums, with some seeing increases as high as 400% over the past few years. The situation has become so dire that many major insurers, like Farmers Insurance, have pulled out of the state entirely, leaving homeowners with fewer options . Trending: Commercial real estate has historically outperformed the stock market, and this platform allows individuals to invest in commercial real estate with as little as $5,000 offering a 12% target yield with a bonus 1% return boost today! Still, there's another side to the story. Real estate agent Paige (last name not provided) offered a more optimistic view to the news outlet, suggesting that experienced investors might be better equipped to handle the complexities of rebuilding. "You can trust what they're doing; they probably have more experience and are going to get it done the right way," Paige said. She contrasted this with inexperienced individuals who might make mistakes that could ultimately impact property values in the neighborhood. This debate emphasizes a larger issue: transparency . Future buyers must thoroughly vet any hurricane-damaged home, ideally with the help of a structural engineer or inspector familiar with storm-related damage. Some experts call for more robust disclosure requirements on the seller’s side to ensure buyers understand the extent of prior damage and repairs. As Florida continues to rebuild before the next storm season, this trend highlights the fine line between revitalization and risk. For now, the advice for prospective buyers is clear: do your homework and don't rely on appearances alone. After all, no one wants to pay top dollar for a home only to discover it's still reeling from the last storm. Read Next: Warren Buffett once said, "If you don't find a way to make money while you sleep, you will work until you die." These high-yield real estate notes that pay 7.5% – 9% make earning passive income easier than ever. These five entrepreneurs are worth $223 billion – they all believe in one platform that offers a 7-9% target yield with monthly dividends © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.