Russian cyber threat to US could invoke ANZUS Treaty | Under fire, out of fuel, no air support: what Russian radio chatter reveals | Weibo put on notice by SEC for potential delisting from Nasdaq
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With heightened warnings that Russia could be preparing a major cyber attack on the US, the Biden administration would expect the Australia, New Zealand and United States Security Treaty (ANZUS) to be invoked in full support of America, according to a senior official. The Sydney Morning Herald
The Times’s Visual Investigations team analyzed dozens of battlefield radio transmissions between Russian forces during an initial invasion of the town of Makariv, outside Kyiv. They reveal an army struggling with logistical problems and communication failures. The New York Times
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has placed Chinese social media platform Weibo among a group of stocks facing delisting, extending the roster of Chinese companies flagged for failing to meet financial disclosure requirements. Nikkei Asia
Ukraine - Russia
Under Fire, Out of Fuel, No Air Support: What Intercepted Russian Radio Chatter Reveals
The New York Times
Robin Stein, Christiaan Triebert, Natalie Reneau, Aleksandra Koroleva and Drew Jordan
The Times’s Visual Investigations team analyzed dozens of battlefield radio transmissions between Russian forces during an initial invasion of the town of Makariv, outside Kyiv. They reveal an army struggling with logistical problems and communication failures.
Russian military secrets could be laid bare after Ukraine captures electronic warfare systems
The Telegraph
Dominic Nicholls
Western spy agencies are getting ready to examine one of Russia’s most potent electronic warfare systems after a unit was captured in Ukraine.
DIJI Drones, Ukraine, and Russia - What we know about Aeroscope
The Verge
Sean Hollister
Now that Ukrainian civilians and their consumer-grade drones have been enlisted to defend against the Russian army, a deadly and possibly unforeseen consequence of Aeroscope may have emerged. If Aeroscope lets the Russian military know exactly where a Ukrainian drone pilot is standing, Russians could use that information to target an aerial strike at the pilot.
Inside Ukraine’s cyber defence: the battle against Moscow’s online salvos
Financial Times
Mehul Srivastava
A month into the Kremlin’s war, Ukrainian officials have taken solace that critical networks have withstood weeks of cyber assaults, but as one official warned, Russia’s vaster resources meant it could steadily wear down the online resistance. “Our networks are our people,” he said. “And Russia is killing our people.”
Australia
Russian cyber threat to US could invoke ANZUS Treaty
The Sydney Morning Herald
Peter Hartcher
With heightened warnings that Russia could be preparing a major cyber attack on the US, the Biden administration would expect the Australia, New Zealand and United States Security Treaty (ANZUS) to be invoked in full support of America, according to a senior official.
China
Weibo put on notice by SEC for potential delisting from Nasdaq
Nikkei Asia
Noriyuki Doi
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has placed Chinese social media platform Weibo among a group of stocks facing delisting, extending the roster of Chinese companies flagged for failing to meet financial disclosure requirements.
Billionaire Pony Ma Vows Long-Term Growth For Tencent Amid China Tech Crackdown
Forbes
Yue Wang
Pony Ma, the billionaire co-founder of Chinese web giant Tencent, has vowed to reposition his company for “sustainable long-term” growth, after Beijing’s crackdown on its internet sphere has chopped more than $490 billion off Tencent’s market cap since it peaked at $951 billion about one year ago.
USA
#SaveTheChildren: How a fringe conspiracy theory fuelled a massive child abuse panic
The Media Manipulation Casebook
Kaylee Fagan
By using social media to amplify misleading statistics and other misinformation, the #SaveTheChildren conspiracy movement contributed to an explosion of fear and anger surrounding child sex trafficking in the United States, and the proliferation of radical, conspiratorial beliefs that had previously been relegated to a relatively small, online community of conspiracy theorists.
Want to talk? FBI trolls Russian Embassy for disgruntled would-be spies
The Washington Post
Devlin Barrett
The FBI is trying a novel strategy to recruit Russian-speaking individuals upset about the country’s invasion of Ukraine: aiming social media ads at cellphones located inside or just outside the Russian Embassy in Washington.
Four Russian Government Employees Charged in Two Historical Hacking Campaigns Targeting Critical Infrastructure Worldwide
US Department of Justice
The Department of Justice unsealed two indictments today charging four defendants, all Russian nationals who worked for the Russian government, with attempting, supporting and conducting computer intrusions that together, in two separate conspiracies, targeted the global energy sector between 2012 and 2018.
North Asia
Industrial AI Startup OnePredict Raises $25 Million Series C for Global Scale-up
Cision PR Newswire
OnePredict, a South Korean industrial AI-based facility predictive maintenance solution company, has successfully closed their most recent Series C funding round of KRW 30 billion (USD 25 million), further strengthening its position in the domestic market and gearing towards global expansion.
Southeast Asia
Amazon to build smaller 'local' data centers in Asia-Pacific
Nikkei Asia
Akito Tanaka
Amazon plans to complement its network of massive data centers in the Asia-Pacific region by building smaller "local zones," the e-commerce company's cloud services arm told Nikkei Asia.
Thailand bans bitcoin, other crypto payments starting in April
Nikkei Asia
Yohei Muramatsu
Thailand on Wednesday issued a ban against payments using cryptocurrencies and other digital assets that will go into effect next month in a bid to maintain stability in financial markets.
South and Central Asia
A dotcom era pioneer in India readies second startup Netcore Cloud for an IPO
Bloomberg
Saritha Rai
Rajesh Jain, 54, a pioneer of India’s internet industry, is readying his second startup Netcore Cloud Pvt. for an initial public offer within the next year, fresh after a $100 million acquisition this month.
Europe
E.U. Takes Aim at Big Tech's Power with Landmark Digital Act
The New York Times
Adam Satariano
The European Union was expected to finalize the Digital Markets Act, the most sweeping legislation to regulate tech since a European privacy law was passed in 2018.
The Middle East
Hotel WiFi across MENA compromised and exposing private data
Al Jazeera
Kareem Chehayeb
Pakistani cybersecurity researcher Etizaz Mohsin was in a hotel room in Qatar when he unexpectedly discovered a technical vulnerability in its internet system that exposed the private information of hundreds of hotels and millions of guests worldwide.
Africa
Togo holds Africa's first cybersecurity summit
Africa News
Serge Koffi
Africa is growing exponentially in terms of internet connectivity but at the same time lags behind on cybersecurity. This is a major concern and was the main theme during the first Africa’s cybersecurity summit organized in Togo’s capital Lomé this week.
Big Tech
The metaverse's hunger for energy must be quantified
Nikkei Asia
Nina Xiang
Powering the virtual world has the potential to worsen climate change.
Facebook ads are suddenly doing better despite Apple advertising debacle
9 to 5 Mac
Allison McDaniel
Since Apple’s app tracking transparency feature began, Meta has seen shaky results regarding its advertising to iOS users. Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, relies heavily on ad revenue and has seen
Research
Computers on Wheels: Automated Vehicles and Cybersecurity Risks in Europe
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Raluca Csernatoni and Marjory Blumenthal
As an emerging and disruptive technology, automated vehicles (AVs) are expected to fundamentally change transportation systems and sociomobility in the twenty-first century.
Ransomware demands and payments increase with use of leak sites
Computer Weekly
Sebastian Klovig Skelton
Ransomware demands and payments hit record highs in 2021, as ransomware gangs proliferate alongside Dark Web “leak sites” to pressure victims, finds Palo Alto Network’s Unit 42.
Jobs
The Sydney Dialogue - Director
ASPI ICPC
The Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) is currently recruiting for a Director to lead the second iteration of ASPI’s Sydney Dialogue - the world’s premier summit on emerging, critical and cyber technologies.
The Sydney Dialogue - Senior Events Coordinator
ASPI ICPC
The Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) is currently recruiting for an experienced events professional to coordinate the planning and logistics of the second iteration of ASPI’s Sydney Dialogue - the world’s premier summit on emerging, critical and cyber technologies.
ICPC Senior Analyst or Analyst - China
ASPI ICPC
ASPI’s International Cyber Policy Centre (ICPC) has a unique opportunity for exceptional and experienced China-focused senior analysts or analysts to join its centre. This role will focus on original research and analysis centred around the (growing) range of topics which our ICPC China team work on. Our China team produces some of the most impactful and well-read policy-relevant research in the world, with our experts often being called upon by politicians, governments, corporates and civil society actors to provide briefings and advice.
Important disclaimer: This digest is a daily collation of material designed to provide authoritative information and commentary in relation to the subject matters covered. The views expressed in this material are those of the authors only. To provide feedback please contact: icpc@aspi.org.au