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Swedish court upholds ban on Huawei selling 5G network gear | EU privacy watchdogs call for ban on facial recognition in public spaces | 3 things to know about Nigeria’s Twitter ban

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Swedish court upholds ban on Huawei selling 5G network gear | EU privacy watchdogs call for ban on facial recognition in public spaces | 3 things to know about Nigeria’s Twitter ban

ASPI Cyber Policy
Jun 23, 2021
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Follow us on Twitter. The Daily Cyber Digest focuses on the topics we work on, including cyber, critical technologies & strategic issues like foreign interference.

  • A Swedish court on Tuesday upheld a ban against Huawei selling 5G equipment in the country, dashing the Chinese company's hopes of staging a comeback in Europe and increasing the chances of potential retaliation by China against rival Ericsson. Reuters

  • Europe’s two privacy watchdogs teamed up on Monday to call for a ban on the use of facial recognition in public spaces, going against draft European Union rules which would allow the technology to be used for public security reasons. Reuters

  • On June 4, the Nigerian government announced that it had suspended Twitter’s operations in the country. The announcement came two days after the social media company removed a tweet by President Muhammadu Buhari, in which Buhari issued a thinly veiled threat against secessionist groups in the southeast “to treat them in the language they understand. The Washington Post

ASPI ICPC

Twitter avatar for @DariImpio
Daria Impiombato @DariImpio
How are Chinese tech companies navigating the #Covid era through foreign sanctions and a regulatory crackdown at home? My colleagues at @ASPI_ICPC @fryan @tomatospy and I discuss this as we talk about our latest project 'Mapping China's Tech Giants' 👉 chinatechmaptest.aspi.org.au
Twitter avatar for @ASPI_org
ASPI @ASPI_org
🎙 NEW PODCAST 1️⃣ @michael_ASPI & @Marcus_ASPI discuss cost concerns for 🇦🇺 submarines program 2️⃣ @fryan, @DariImpio & @tomatospy discuss 'Mapping China's Tech Giants' 3️⃣ @johncoyne14 & @LeadAbilityGrp outline post-Covid nation-building opportunities 🎧: https://t.co/XFiGTMGPm7
11:24 PM ∙ Jun 22, 2021
2Likes2Retweets

Australia

New tools show companies how to avoid building bad tech
Australian Financial Review
@DLLabs
Australia’s cyber safety tsar has released a set of self-assessment tools designed to help internet start-ups build platforms free from bullying, racism, ageism, terrorism and the myriad other ills that have plagued social media since its inception.

How a bunch of data nerds shamed government to release vaccine data
Australian Financial Review
@tburton
How many people have been vaccinated in Australia? This is the simple question a group of young data and digital evangelists has been pushing the federal government to answer for nearly four months.

South Australia splashes out on space, defence, and cybersecurity in 2021-22 Budget
ZDNet
@achanthadavong
The South Australian government believes tech-focused sectors such as defence, space, and cybersecurity will have a key role to play in the state's future.

Digital initiatives across NSW gain funding boost from 2021-22 Budget
ZDNet
@achanthadavong
The New South Wales government handed down its 2021-22 Budget on Tuesday, revealing that digital initiatives across the state will receive handsome handouts.

China

Twitter avatar for @onlyyoontv
Eunice Yoon @onlyyoontv
#China logistics firm in Guangzhou confirms to @CNBC it’s airlifting 3,000kg (6,600lbs) #bitcoin mining machines to Maryland, USA. Fenghua International advertises products delivered to door, tax on both ends cleared. Price per kilo: as low as $9.37! #cryptocurrencies
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9:45 AM ∙ Jun 21, 2021
3,903Likes1,207Retweets

LinkedIn Accounts of Scholars Blocked in China
The Wall Street Journal
@lizalinwsj
Affected users say social-networking site owned by Microsoft Corp. is obstructing them over ‘prohibited content’ without further explanation.

Bitcoin tumbles below $30,000 for the first time since January
The New York Times
@el72champs@zhonggg
Bitcoin fell below $30,000 on Tuesday for the first time since January after a torrid week of trading in which the cryptocurrency has lost nearly 30 percent of its value... The decline comes as China intensifies its crackdown on Bitcoin.

USA

Twitter avatar for @APerliger
Arie Perliger @APerliger
1/ Minutes after the release of the national strategy for countering domestic terrorism, we began to see a flood of glowing praises from practitioners/academics; here, I provide what I hope is a bit more nuanced thoughts on the document (and critic on the response to it).
11:14 AM ∙ Jun 21, 2021
76Likes29Retweets

The Technology 202: New Twisted Toys ads highlight how tech giants prey on children's data
The Washington Post
@Cat_Zakrzewski
Meet Share Bear, the toy that knows everything about you … and then sells it to billion-dollar tech companies. This cuddly yet creepy companion is part of a new campaign launching later this week called “Twisted Toys,” which aims to raise awareness about the ways tech companies prey on children’s data.

Twitter avatar for @DOJNatSec
National Security Division, U.S. Dept of Justice @DOJNatSec
Five Charged in Scheme to Export Thermal Imaging Scopes and Night Vision Goggles to Russia, in Violation of Arms Export Control Act
justice.govFive Charged in Scheme to Export Thermal Imaging Scopes and Night Vision Goggles to Russia, in Violation of Arms Export Control ActA federal grand jury in Los Angeles unsealed an indictment Thursday that accuses five defendants of conspiring to unlawfully export defense articles to Russia. Specifically, the defendants allegedly exported thermal imaging riflescopes and night-vision goggles without a license, in violation of the …
7:02 PM ∙ Jun 21, 2021
287Likes180Retweets

Cyber Risk Across the U.S. Nuclear Enterprise
Texas National Security Review
@HerbLinCyber
As the United States embarks on an effort to modernize many elements of its nuclear enterprise, it needs to consider how dependencies on modern information technologies could lead to cyber-induced failures of nuclear deterrence or to nuclear war.

GlobalFoundries puts $4bn into Singapore expansion
Nikkei
@DylanLoh
U.S. semiconductor giant GlobalFoundries will invest over $4 billion to expand its Singapore wafer plant and ramp up capacity as it attempts to tackle the global microchip shortage.

Like ‘Terminator,’ high-tech cyber crime to ‘keep coming’
Reuters
@alwynscott
Businesses worldwide are fighting sophisticated data scientists as they battle to protect their data-rich computers from cyber crime - and the costly attacks are not going to stop, a top expert at insurer Sompo Holdings Inc said on Tuesday.

North-East Asia

Twitter avatar for @CharlesRollet1
Charles Rollet @CharlesRollet1
new: South Korean regulators have banned 224 Hikvision cameras for 1 year over forged test reports. Investigators sanctioned 378 firms & revoked 1,696 products total. But Hikvision was by far the worst affected. ipvm.com/reports/korea-… via @ipvideo
ipvm.com224 Hikvision Products Banned For 1 Year By South KoreaThe South Korean equivalent of the US FCC has come down hard on Hikvision, determining it had the most report forgeries and meting out a significant punishment.
9:15 AM ∙ Jun 22, 2021

New Zealand & The Pacific

Twitter avatar for @UNDP_Solomons
UNDP Solomon Islands @UNDP_Solomons
Just launched 🚀 @UNDP and @opmcpress have initiated the country’s first #Digital Readiness Assessment! 30+ digital focal points from 🇸🇧 Ministries gathered to assess Solomon Islands’ digital capacities & harness its digital potential for #sustainabledevelopment.
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5:31 AM ∙ Jun 22, 2021
19Likes3Retweets

South and Central Asia

Twitter avatar for @cis_india
Centre for Internet and Society @cis_india
In @EUCyberDirect‘s #DirectionsBlog, read this essay by @a_barrinha, & @BasuArindrajit where they identify factors that helped achieve diplomatic success in matters relating to outer space, & explore how #CyberDiplomacy could be dealt with in the same way
directionsblog.euCould Cyber-Diplomacy Learn From Outer Space? » directions blogWhile the Open Ended Working Group (OEWG) consensus report on ICTs in the context of international security is perhaps a successful compromise, it brought limited novelty in terms of cyber norms. Fifty-five years ago, there was another “space” in need of international regulation as a consequence of …
12:00 PM ∙ Jun 18, 2021
3Likes2Retweets

India plans tighter e-commerce rules amid complaints over Amazon, Flipkart
Reuters
@adityakalra
India proposed banning flash sales on e-commerce websites and said on Monday their affiliate entities should not be listed as sellers on their platforms, in a proposed tightening of rules that could hit Amazon and Walmart's Flipkart.

  • Amazon faces new antitrust challenge from Indian online sellers: legal documents
    Reuters
    @adityakalra
    A group of more than 2,000 online sellers has filed an antitrust case against Amazon in India, alleging the U.S. company favours some retailers whose online discounts drive independent vendors out of business, a legal filing seen by Reuters showed.

UK

A major international data flow problem just got resolved. But another row is already brewing
ZDNet
@daphneleprince
The EU has just green-lighted the free flow of personal data with the UK. But if the country now changes its data laws, it could bring an end to the agreement.

Europe

Swedish court upholds ban on Huawei selling 5G network gear
Reuters
@johan_ahlander @Tech_Correspond
A Swedish court on Tuesday upheld a ban against Huawei selling 5G equipment in the country, dashing the Chinese company's hopes of staging a comeback in Europe and increasing the chances of potential retaliation by China against rival Ericsson.. "Sweden's security is of heavy importance and the administrative court has taken into account that only the Security Police and the armed forces together have an overall picture regarding the security situation and the threat to Sweden," the court said in a statement.

EU privacy watchdogs call for ban on facial recognition in public spaces
Reuters
@FooYunChee
Europe’s two privacy watchdogs teamed up on Monday to call for a ban on the use of facial recognition in public spaces, going against draft European Union rules which would allow the technology to be used for public security reasons.

Freight tech startup Forto raises $240 million in Softbank-led round
Reuters
@Busvine
Forto has raised $240 million from investors led by Softbank, the freight technology startup said on Monday, and will invest in expanding its platform for organising trade shipments between China and Europe.

EU to launch rapid response cybersecurity team
Politico
@laurenscerulus
The European Commission will present its plan on Wednesday to set up what it calls the "Joint Cyber Unit," which would allow national capitals hit by cyberattacks to ask for help from other countries and the EU, including through rapid response teams that can swoop in and fight off hackers in real time, according to the draft.

Google’s Internet Ad Dominance Draws Fresh E.U. Antitrust Inquiry
The New York Times
@satariano
The bloc’s investigation, which takes aim at the heart of Google’s business model, is part of a push to regulate the world’s largest technology companies.

Russia

The dangers of echoing Russian disinformation on Ukraine
Atlantic Council
@UmlandAndreas
Russia’s spring 2021 saber-rattling on the Ukrainian border helped guarantee that Ukraine would be high on the international agenda during June’s G7, NATO, and US-Russia summit meetings.

Twitter avatar for @ccdcoe
NATO CCDCOE @ccdcoe
Glad to share the result of a joint cooperation project with @STRATCOMCOE on Russia's strategy in #cyberspace stratcomcoe.org/publications/r…
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10:19 AM ∙ Jun 22, 2021
37Likes23Retweets

Canada

Trudeau’s Party Passes Bill to Regulate Social Media, Streaming
Bloomberg
@kbolongaro
Canadian lawmakers passed a controversial bill that aims to regulate programming distributed by media streaming services and social platforms like Facebook and YouTube, a measure that critics warn could infringe on individual speech.

Africa

3 things to know about Nigeria’s Twitter ban
The Washington Post
@monkeycageblog
On June 4, the Nigerian government announced that it had suspended Twitter’s operations in the country. The announcement came two days after the social media company removed a tweet by President Muhammadu Buhari, in which Buhari issued a thinly veiled threat against secessionist groups in the southeast “to treat them in the language they understand.

Misc

Twitter avatar for @UNIDIR
UNIDIR, the UN Institute for Disarmament Research @UNIDIR
Cyber is on everybody’s lips these days. Our latest series “International Cyber Operations” examines the capabilities and doctrines of 15 States: 🇦🇺🇧🇷🇨🇦🇨🇳🇫🇷🇩🇪🇮🇳🇮🇷🇮🇱🇯🇵🇰🇷🇷🇺🇸🇦🇬🇧🇺🇸 The intro paper with contextual background, definitions and methodology is already out!
12:00 PM ∙ Jun 20, 2021
29Likes16Retweets

Assessing the risks of civilian harm from military cyber operations during armed conflicts
Humanitarian Law & Policy Blog
Ellie Shami
Cyber risks are now so prevalent that it is hard to believe it was just over a decade ago when the world witnessed what experts believe to be the first case of a coordinated cyber attack synchronized with other warfare domains.

Twitter is opening applications to test Ticketed Spaces and Super Follows
The Verge
@thedextriarchy
Twitter is opening applications for a limited test of its Super Follows and Ticketed Spaces features. US-based users can apply separately for each program through Twitter’s mobile app; Super Follows are restricted to iOS, while Ticketed Spaces are available on iOS and Android.

Facebook is working on visual search for shopping on Instagram
Engadget
@karissabe
Facebook is working on visual search technology for Instagram as it doubles down on shopping features throughout its platform. Speaking in a live audio room on Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg said the company is in the early stages of building camera-based search tools.

Intel forms Accelerated Computing, Software business units
ZDNet
@TiernanRayTech
Intel’s head of GPUs, Raja Koduri, will run the accelerated computing business, Sandra Rivera will run Xeon chips operations, and Barefoot Networks co-founder Nick McKeown will run a combination of IoT and networking.

Events

Twitter avatar for @ASPI_org
ASPI @ASPI_org
🚨 EVENT ALERT 🚨 'Mapping China’s Tech Giants: Covid-19, supply chains & strategic competition' Join us on June 23 for a discussion on growing 🇨🇳-🇺🇸 technological competition, the PRC’s evolving data ecosystem & the impacts of Covid-19 Register now: bit.ly/3gCChTM
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6:27 AM ∙ Jun 15, 2021
16Likes9Retweets
Twitter avatar for @ASPI_org
ASPI @ASPI_org
🎙 NEW PODCAST 1️⃣ @michael_ASPI & @Marcus_ASPI discuss cost concerns for 🇦🇺 submarines program 2️⃣ @fryan, @DariImpio & @tomatospy discuss 'Mapping China's Tech Giants' 3️⃣ @johncoyne14 & @LeadAbilityGrp outline post-Covid nation-building opportunities 🎧: bit.ly/3cWhBVZ
bit.lyAustralia’s submarines, mapping China’s technology giants, post-Covid nation-buildingArguably the biggest submarine program in the Western world outside of the United States, Australia’s submarine development continues to raise concerns around cost. Michael Shoebridge and Dr Marcus He
7:40 AM ∙ Jun 22, 2021
1Like1Retweet
Twitter avatar for @RyersonU
Ryerson University @RyersonU
On June 24th, 1-2pm ET @cyberpolicyx is hosting @nytime reporter @nicoleperlroth for a virtual talk on her book, This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends: The Cyberweapons Arms Race 💾⚠️ All attendees can get a book discount! 📚 Register for free: eventbrite.ca/e/this-is-how-…
eventbrite.caThis is How They Tell Me the World Ends: Virtual Book TalkOn Thurs. June 24, join a book talk with New York Times reporter Nicole Perlroth, author of This is How They Tell Me the World Ends
5:59 PM ∙ Jun 21, 2021
8Likes6Retweets

Calling Aussie and NZ tech companies for London Tech Week 2021
GOV.UK
The UK’s Department for International Trade (DIT) is seeking tech companies from Australia and New Zealand who are considering the UK for international expansion. The selected group will join the official hybrid mission to London Tech Week in September 2021.

Research

Twitter avatar for @alexstamos
Alex Stamos @alexstamos
The final report of the Election Integrity Partnership (@2020Partnership) is now available in print. Thank you so much to @elenacryst and @elegant_wallaby for all of the work that went into readying 282 pages for printing.
lulu.comLulu
9:29 PM ∙ Jun 21, 2021
56Likes25Retweets

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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