China’s surveillance state sucks up data, U.S. tech is key to sorting it | Secret Amazon reports expose company’s surveillance of labor | U.S. drafts list of 89 firms with military ties
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Intel and Nvidia chips power a supercomputing center that tracks people in a place where government suppresses minorities, raising questions about the tech industry’s responsibility. The New York Times
Dozens of leaked documents from Amazon’s Global Security Operations Center reveal the company’s reliance on Pinkerton operatives to spy on warehouse workers and the extensive monitoring of labor unions, environmental activists, and other social movements. Vice
The Trump administration is close to declaring that 89 Chinese aerospace and other companies have military ties, restricting them from buying a range of U.S. goods and technology, according to a draft copy of the list seen by Reuters. Reuters
ASPI ICPC
Mapping China's Tech Giants website Feedback
ASPI ICPC
We will soon begin the next phase of "Mapping China's Technology Giants". Part of this project will include updating the website. To ensure the website remains as useful to you and your organisation as possible, we would like to invite you to give us feedback on your use of our website. Your feedback is an important part of this process as it allows us to know what is working well, what we can improve on and what really matters to you.
Can the Australian public service rise to the cloud?
The Strategist
@tomatospy
It’s been recognised that one of the key enablers of robust, resilient and responsive government services is cloud computing. The United States, United Kingdom and Australia all have cloud adoption or ‘cloud first’ strategies, and the US Department of Defense is spending up to US$10 billion on secure cloud infrastructure. But in Australia there’s a problem. The recent review of the Australian public service found that it was lagging behind comparable governments in making the transformation to delivering government services digitally.
It’s not just spies who want your data
The Strategist
But beyond foreign intelligence threats, there’s a broader issue that also deserves our attention. The problem is data—or, more specifically, the accumulation of stolen, scraped or traded personal information that affects everyone, not just government and defence employees. While it may not involve state secrets, personal data is a form of sensitive information and it needs to be protected.
Online misinformation: what is big tech doing about it?
2ser
What do you do when a sitting President falsely tweets he won an election? Or false claims about COVID-19’s potential cures go viral? These are questions social media platforms have increasingly been forced to answer. This morning we were joined by Ariel Bogle, Journalist and Analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute’s International Cyber Policy Centre to discuss cyber disinformation and the policies social media platforms need to employ to combat it.
World
China, Russia spreading lies, digital discord: former US National Security Agency director Mike Rogers
The Australian
Chinese and Russian state-based cyber actors are orchestrating industrial-scale malicious attacks and disinformation campaigns to gain global competitive advantage and weaken democratic institutions via “manipulation” and theft of sensitive data. Amid a surge in cyber attacks targeting Australian governments, critical infrastructure and private sector firms, former US National Security Agency director Mike Rogers has called on Western nations to work together in neutralising active threats.
Hacker posts exploits for over 49,000 vulnerable Fortinet VPNs
Bleeping Computer
A hacker has posted a list of one-line exploits to steal VPN credentials from almost 50,000 Fortinet VPN devices. Present on the list of vulnerable targets are domains belonging to high street banks and government organizations from around the world.
Australia
‘User pays’ rule applies to Google and Facebook cashing in on local news content
The Australian
Innovative legislation under consideration will bring Google and Facebook to the table to negotiate fair payment to Australian media outlets for locally produced news content. Once implemented Australians can feel confident they will have a viable media establishment that can continue to ask the tough questions our institutions and those in power often cannot or will not ask of themselves.
Australia spends $500,000 to strengthen tech ties with Quad allies amid China tension
The Guardian
@danielhurstbne
Australia will spend $500,000 setting up a tech network among the “Quad” democracies – Australia, the United States, Japan and India – against the backdrop of worsening tensions with China.
China
China’s Surveillance State Sucks Up Data. U.S. Tech Is Key to Sorting It.
The New York Times
@paulmozur @donal888
Intel and Nvidia chips power a supercomputing center that tracks people in a place where government suppresses minorities, raising questions about the tech industry’s responsibility.
Alibaba filled with gratitude, pledges to positively respond to govt rules: chairman
The Global Times
Alibaba's chairman expressed gratitude toward regulatory governance at a conference attended by internet giants and regulators on Monday, a stark contrast to Jack Ma Yun, founder of Alibaba, who blasted global financial regulatory authorities for stifling innovation back in October.
Covid-19: China pushes for QR code based global travel system
BBC
Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for a "global mechanism" that would use QR codes to open up international travel. "We need to further harmonise policies and standards and establish 'fast tracks' to facilitate the orderly flow of people," he said.
USA
In latest China jab, U.S. drafts list of 89 firms with military ties
Reuters
The Trump administration is close to declaring that 89 Chinese aerospace and other companies have military ties, restricting them from buying a range of U.S. goods and technology, according to a draft copy of the list seen by Reuters.
Janet Yellen Is Biden’s Pick for Treasury Secretary
The Wall Street Journal
Speaking in Hong Kong in January, Ms. Yellen said longstanding issues with Beijing that weren’t addressed by the Trump administration’s phase one trade deal, such as subsidies to state-owned enterprises and competition for new technologies with significant national-security implications, threatened to pull the world into two competing spheres. “We have very difficult issues that lie ahead,” she said.
Secret Amazon Reports Expose the Company’s Surveillance of Labor and Environmental Groups
Vice
@LaurenKGurley
Dozens of leaked documents from Amazon’s Global Security Operations Center reveal the company’s reliance on Pinkerton operatives to spy on warehouse workers and the extensive monitoring of labor unions, environmental activists, and other social movements.
The deep roots of Trump’s 'voter fraud' strategy
BBC
President Trump alleged "fraud" even while votes were still being counted - the culmination of a strategy at least months in the making.
Note to Biden: Forget Trade, the Real War With China Is Over Tech
Foreign Policy
Just like Trump, Biden is stuck in the last century if he believes globalization is about trade and rust-belt manufacturing jobs.
Apple's security chief charged with bribery
BBC
Apple's head of global security has been charged with bribery. Thomas Moyer is accused of offering bribes in the form of iPads worth $70,000 in order to obtain concealed firearms licenses. The charges were brought by a California grand jury on Monday. Apple did not immediately respond to request for comment.
UK
Smart doorbells 'easy target for hackers' study finds
BBC
Major security flaws in popular smart doorbells are putting consumers at risk of being targeted by hackers inside their homes, according to Which. The consumer group says devices being sold on marketplaces such as Amazon and eBay, could easily be hacked or switched off by criminals.
On the Offensive: The UK’s New Cyber Force
RUSI
The creation of a new National Cyber Force is an important development but should not divert attention from the wider issues around cyber security.
Europe
7 things we just learned about Sequoia’s European expansion plans
TechCrunch
Sequoia Capital, the renowned Silicon Valley venture capital firm that has backed companies like Apple, Google, Dropbox, Airbnb and Stripe, recently disclosed that it had opened its first office in Europe. To staff up, it hired partner Luciana Lixandru away from rival Accel Partners.
Misc
Can We Make Our Robots Less Biased Than We Are?
The New York Times
A.I. developers are committing to end the injustices in how their technology is often made and used.
Events
Jobs
Senior Strategic Communications Manager
ASPI
The Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) has an outstanding opportunity for a highly experienced, strategic comms professional to contribute to the launch of a new, high profile global project. The Senior Strategic Communications Manager will be an integral member of a bespoke team that will liaise with the Australian government, foreign governments, industry and civil society to build up this exciting new project from scratch. The position will work closely with the Executive Director and the Institutes’s International Cyber Policy Centre.