Russian lawmakers to force U.S. tech giants to open local offices | Morrison raises alarm about cyber attacks with British intelligence | Hikvision CEO calls out 'US high-tech warfare' against China
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Russian lawmakers passed legislation on Thursday that would oblige U.S. tech giants to open offices in Russia by January 2022 or face punitive measures, part of a push by Russia to beef up what it calls internet "sovereignty". Reuters
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has raised the alarm on the escalating wave of cyber attacks against all levels of industry and government in meetings with Britain’s top spies in London, as the number of ransomware attacks in Australia appear to have tripled n recent months. After wrapping up the G7 leaders summit, Mr Morrison was due to meet with British intelligence officials on Monday London time, where cyber security and protection of critical infrastructure were expected to be major talking points. The Sydney Morning Herald
Hikvision's CEO publicly called out "US high-tech warfare" against China and suppressing China technology companies, in a recent earnings call. IPVM
ASPI ICPC
‘Utter nonsense’: CSIRO blasted for dropping Chinese climate partner
The Sydney Morning Herald
@p_hannam
Audrey Fritz, who has researched the Qingdao lab for the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, said the organisation had extensive involvement with Chinese government entities and defence conglomerates. As such, “the collaboration between CSIRO and QNML poses a risk that likely extends beyond CSIRO’s safeguards”, Ms Fritz said. “Conducting due diligence research on entities to understand their ownership structure is imperative before establishing research co-operations, and such research could have changed the Australian government’s original decision to approve the cooperation in 2017.” She noted, though, that the lab still appears to co-operate with various US, French and Japanese entities, and said: “these international organisations may need to re-evaluate their collaborations with QNML depending on the security implications of their joint research programs”.
In Ransomware Battle, Bitcoin May Actually Be an Ally
Bank Info Security
@Jeremy_Kirk
There's truth in what both Weaver and Hutchins contend, says Tom Uren, senior analyst with the Australian Strategic Policy Institute's International Cyber Policy Centre. If criminals moved from bitcoin to the traditional financial system, those institutions generally cooperate to stop crime. That would increase friction, which might limit scale, Uren says. On the other side, making bitcoin illegal in one region doesn't make it go away. But tighter controls around it would help spot illegal activity, which is one of the prongs of the Ransomware Task Force, Uren says.
World
An internet outage affects company websites in Australia and beyond
The New York Times
@mikeives @yanzhuang25
The websites for several major corporations in Australia and beyond briefly stopped working for many users on Thursday, in what analysts said was a glitch caused by service disruptions at a hosting platform based in the United States.
Australia
Scott Morrison raises the alarm about escalating cyber attacks with British intelligence chiefs
The Sydney Morning Herald
@Gallo_Ways
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has raised the alarm on the escalating wave of cyber attacks against all levels of industry and government in meetings with Britain’s top spies in London, as the number of ransomware attacks in Australia appear to have tripled n recent months. After wrapping up the G7 leaders summit, Mr Morrison was due to meet with British intelligence officials on Monday London time, where cyber security and protection of critical infrastructure were expected to be major talking points.
‘More motivation’: ANZ cyber security boss warns against paying ransoms
The Sydney Morning Herald
@CharlotteGriev1
Big four bank ANZ’s chief information security officer Lynwen Connick has warned organisations against paying ransoms to hackers, saying the payments only lead to more attacks.
Protecting Australia beyond its traditional borders: apps and policing in the internet age
The Strategist
@dr_westendorf
The success of Operation Ironside, led by the Australian Federal Police with a host of international partner agencies, hinged on the use of a messaging app thought by criminals to be encrypted. The numerous arrests and seizures announced last week show how globalised the business model of transnational and serious organised crime groups has become.
Reporting on QAnon has fallen victim to conspiracy thinking
The Canberra Times
@SimonCopland
On Monday night, ABC's Four Corners aired a highly anticipated report on QAnon in Australia. QAnon is a far-right conspiracy theory that believes political elites are a cabal of paedophiles running a global sex trafficking ring. The truth of this cabal is supposedly slowly being released online by an anonymous forum poster who calls themself "Q". Instead, Four Corners focused on the links between Australian QAnon activist Tim Stewart and Prime Minister Scott Morrison.
China
Hikvision CEO Calls Out 'US High-Tech Warfare' Against China
IPVM
Hikvision's CEO publicly called out "US high-tech warfare" against China and suppressing China technology companies, in a recent earnings call.
Huawei Quietly Powers Up Chipmaking Investments
Caixin
Xu Ziyi, Yang Ge
Embattled telecoms-equipment maker Huawei Technologies has extended a recent move into the high-tech microchip sector with a new investment in high-powered lasers, as it seeks to lower its dependence on foreign technology.
USA
Think small: Why the intelligence community should do less about new threats
War on the Rocks
@JoshRovner1
Meanwhile, new technologies have enabled private individuals worldwide to publicize information in real time, even from states that are hard to reach. Intelligence agencies thus face a difficult problem in distinguishing their work from the various other sources available to policymakers… Cyberspace, for example, is almost entirely a private sector domain, meaning that intelligence agencies will struggle against transnational threats without active cooperation from industry. The private sector rightfully demands that information sharing is a two-way street, and it stands to benefit when government agencies reveal new malware and vulnerabilities. As a result, routine interaction is best for all concerned.
Read Danielle Cave’s work for Australian Foreign Affairs on ‘How Covid-19 & cyberspace are changing spycraft’, here.
Why Ransomware Attacks Are on the Rise and How the U.S. Can Fight Them
The Wall Street Journal
@dnvolz
Ransomware attacks are increasing in frequency, victim losses are skyrocketing, and hackers are shifting their targets. WSJ’s Dustin Volz explains why these attacks are on the rise and what the U.S. can do to fight them.
He Warned Apple About the Risks in China. Then They Became Reality.
The New York Times
@jacknicas
Doug Guthrie, once one of America’s leading China bulls, rang the alarm on doing business there. He spoke about his time at Apple.
North Asia
Taiwan tech firms fear fallout after US raises supply chain alarm
Nikkei Asia
@Lauly_Th_Li @ChengTingFang
Tech suppliers in Taiwan, Japan and South Korea have been bracketed alongside China as "dangerous risks" to U.S. national security -- underlining how Washington's desire to strengthen its supply chains could rebound on business in Asia.
Southeast Asia
UK
WhatsApp is where real political power lies in Britain
Financial Times
@SebastianEPayne
The Dominic Cummings-Boris Johnson chat shows how the messaging app dominates Westminster’s decision-making.
Europe
U.S., EU Forge Closer Ties on Emerging Technologies to Counter Russia and China
The Wall Street Journal
@DanMichaelsWSJ
The U.S. and European Union plan to cooperate more on technology regulation, industrial development and bilateral trade following President Biden’s visit, in a bid to help Western allies better compete with China and Russia on developing and protecting critical and emerging technologies.
Wielding Twitter, Europe’s ‘Marshal Twito’ Takes Aim at the Media
The New York Times
Andrew Higgins
Prime Minister Janez Jansa of Slovenia, which will take on the European Union’s rotating presidency next month, is using what press freedom groups call ‘Trumpian’ tactics.
Russia
Russian lawmakers vote to force U.S. tech giants to open local offices
Reuters
Russian lawmakers passed legislation on Thursday that would oblige U.S. tech giants to open offices in Russia by January 2022 or face punitive measures, part of a push by Russia to beef up what it calls internet "sovereignty".
Americas
QAnons Are Harassing People at the Whim of a Woman They Say Is Canada’s Queen
VICE
@MackLamoureux
A woman who claims she is the secret ruler of Canada has, thanks to QAnon influencers, thousands of followers, some of which are extremely active offline and harassing Canadians.
Middle East
Three Iraqi women explain how and why they stay anonymous online
Rest of World
@SofiaBarbarani
The internet affords some Iraqi women unprecedented freedom, but for many, it’s hard to shake the patriarchal norms of their IRL lives.
Misc
Stepping into the breach: military responses to global cyber insecurity
Humanitarian Law & Policy
@noelle_cowling
In this post, part of the ICRC’s series on avoiding civilian harm during military cyber operations, Noëlle van der Waag-Cowling – Cyber Program Lead at the Security Institute for Governance and Leadership in Africa, Stellenbosch University – considers contemporary and future military conflict in cyberspace and possible societal risks.
Apple’s and Google’s New AI Wizardry Promises Privacy—at a Cost
WIRED
@tsimonite
The companies revealed upgrades for their phones that protect data and reduce reliance on the cloud. It also binds users more tightly to their ecosystems.
Google backs Linux project to make Android, Chrome OS harder to hack
CNet
@stshank
Google said Thursday it's funding a project to increase Linux security by writing parts of the operating system's core in the Rust programming language, a modernization effort that could bolster the security of the internet and smartphones.
Snapchat Ends 'Speed Filter' That Critics Say Encouraged Reckless Driving
NPR
@BobbyAllyn
The maker of the Snapchat app is eliminating a feature known as the "speed filter" that lets users capture how fast they are moving and share it with friends, NPR has learned.
Climbing Out Of Facebook's Reality Hole
BuzzFeed News
@mat
With its new camera platform, Facebook is busy augmenting reality. Perhaps it should pay a bit more attention to the hard truths of the world in which we currently live.
Social media platforms must abandon algorithmic secrecy
Financial Times
Frederick Mostert, @aurbelis
More transparency is required about the algorithms that wield enormous power over billions of people.
Research
Bombshell Report Finds Phone Network Encryption Was Deliberately Weakened
VICE
@lorenzofb
A new paper shows that two old encryption algorithms still used in mobile networks can be exploited to spy on phones' internet traffic.
Nearly half of all ads on fake news sites come from Google, study finds
Marketing Brew
@Ryanbarwick
According to a white paper published last month by researchers at the University of Michigan School of Information, 48% of ad traffic on “fake” news publishers is served by Google. Nearly a third (32%) of “low credibility sites” like Breitbart, Drudge Report, and Sputnik News were delivered by Google.
Events
Jobs
ICPC Analyst or Senior Analyst - Cyber & technology
ASPI ICPC
ASPI’s International Cyber Policy Centre (ICPC) has a unique opportunity for an exceptional cyber-security or technology focused analyst or senior analyst to join its centre in 2021. Please note that interviews have commenced for this position and will continue until the end of June. This role will focus on policy relevant cybersecurity analysis, informed public commentary and either original data-heavy research and/or technical analysis. Analysts usually have around 7-15 years work experience. Senior analysts usually have a minimum of 15 years relevant work experience and tend to be involved in staff and project management, fundraising and stakeholder engagement.
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. Analysts usually have at least 5 years, often 7-10 years’ of work experience. Senior analysts usually have a minimum of 15 years relevant work experience and, in addition to research, they take on a leadership role in the centre and tend to be involved in staff and project management, fundraising and stakeholder engagement.
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