Thousands of Facebook Groups buzzed with calls for violence ahead of U.S. election | Facebook fights hate speech, misinformation before Myanmar poll | TikTok used to censor content critical of China
Follow us on Twitter. The Daily Cyber Digest focuses on the topics we work on, including cyber, critical technologies & strategic issues like foreign interference.
Before Facebook shut down a rapidly growing "Stop the Steal" Facebook Group on Thursday, the forum featured calls for members to ready their weapons should President Donald Trump lose his bid to remain in the White House. Reuters.
One of two Muslims allowed to run for the ruling party in Buddhist-majority Myanmar’s general election on Sunday, Sithu Maung, worries fake news on Facebook could damage his chances. Reuters.
A TikTok executive at a UK parliamentary committee hearing that the video-sharing app censored content likely to anger China in the past, but insisted that is no longer the case. Business Insider.
ASPI ICPC
World
Facebook removes 'inauthentic' networks spanning 8 nations
Reuters
Facebook on Friday said it has dismantled seven separate networks of fake accounts and pages on its platform that were active in Iran, Afghanistan, Egypt, Turkey, Morocco, Myanmar, Georgia, and Ukraine due to "coordinated inauthentic behaviour".
Australia
SA Police issue scam warning after fraudster impersonating NBN calls cybercrime unit
ABC
South Australian police have issued a warning about a new scam targeting Adelaide locals, after the force's own cybercrime unit was among the recipients of one of the deceptive phone calls.
China
China’s Leaders Focus on Tech as They Make 5-Year Economic Plan
The Diplomat
Self-reliance, especially amid the growing U.S.-China tech war, is a key theme of the CCP gathering currently underway.
Will Biden undo Trump’s China Tech policy?
Observer Research Foundation
The short answer: Unlikely.
Windows 10, iOS, Chrome, and many others fall at China's top hacking contest
ZD Net
Many of today's top software programs have been hacked using new and never-before-seen exploits at this year's edition of the Tianfu Cup — China's largest and most prestigious hacking competition.
Hong Kong: Snitch hotline gets more than 1,000 calls
BBC
Hong Kong's new hotline to report breaches of the controversial national security law has received more than 1,000 calls within hours of going live.
USA
Thousands of Facebook Groups buzzed with calls for violence ahead of U.S. election
Reuters
Before Facebook shut down a rapidly growing "Stop the Steal" Facebook Group on Thursday, the forum featured calls for members to ready their weapons should President Donald Trump lose his bid to remain in the White House.
Facebook Has A Metric For “Violence And Incitement Trends.” It’s Rising.
Buzzfeed News
The metric, which assesses the potential for danger based on keywords, rose to 580 from 400 this week — a 45% increase.
Don’t declare premature victory on Big Tech’s election work just yet
The Protocol
Have big tech platforms done enough to help prevent election chaos from spreading online? It's too early to call.
Inside Twitter’s Decision to Fact-Check Trump’s Tweets
One Zero
‘We knew from a comms perspective that all hell would break loose,’ says Twitter’s vice president of global communications
Incendiary texts traced to outfit run by top Trump aide
AP
A texting company run by one of President Donald Trump’s top campaign officials sent out thousands of targeted, anonymous text messages urging supporters to rally where votes were being counted in Philadelphia on Thursday, falsely claiming Democrats were trying to steal the presidential election.
Trump-linked figures have boosted #StopTheSteal movement
Politico
Demonstrations across the country protesting alleged fraud in this week’s election have ties to major conservative activist groups and MAGA personalities affiliated with President Donald Trump, according to multiple misinformation researchers.
Twitter permanently suspends Steve Bannon account after talk of beheading
CNN
Twitter permanently suspended an account belonging to former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon after he suggested Thursday morning that Dr. Anthony Fauci and FBI Director Christopher Wray should be beheaded. His comments were made in a video posted to his Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter accounts.
Asia
Spreading like wildfire': Facebook fights hate speech, misinformation before Myanmar poll
Reuters
One of two Muslims allowed to run for the ruling party in Buddhist-majority Myanmar’s general election on Sunday, Sithu Maung, worries fake news on Facebook could damage his chances.
From Mukesh Ambani to Arnab Goswami, Imposter Twitter Accounts Continue to Amplify False News
The Wire
In the past few weeks, multiple Twitter accounts impersonating prominent individuals have successfully amassed thousands of likes and retweets. Several people have fallen for these handles despite each of them carrying signs which hint at their dubiousness — absence of the ‘blue tick’ that verifies genuine accounts and controversial statements not reported by the media.
UK
Robot soldiers could make up quarter of British army by 2030s'
The Guardian
Thirty thousand “robot soldiers” could form an integral part of the British army in the 2030s, working alongside humans in and around the frontline, the head of the armed forces said in a television interview on Sunday.
Cybersecurity After Brexit
UK In A Changing Europe
There’s a limit to what a country can do on its own; inevitably there’s a lot of cooperation, and a good deal has been done in the EU. So how will Brexit affect that cooperation?
A senior TikTok executive admitted the company used to censor content critical of China, 'specifically with regard to the Uighur situation'
Business Insider
A TikTok executive admitted that the video-sharing app censored content likely to anger China in the past, but insisted that is no longer the case.
Europe
Huawei's Geostrategic Role
European Values Centre for Security Policy
The geostrategic implications of Huawei’s bid to dominate global 5G telecommunications networks pose an enormous challenge to the West. But the nature and gravity of this challenge is still inadequately appreciated by people outside of China. The symbiotic relationship of Huawei to China’s integrated Party-state-military regime is difficult for people in the free world to comprehend. The PRC’s sophisticated and comprehensive influence operations put considerable resources into downplaying Huawei’s role in China’s hegemonistic global agenda. Huawei’s public relations narrative is that Huawei is an exceptionally well-managed exemplary corporate citizen that is the victim of the U.S.’s foreign policy agenda to suppress China’s rightful and peaceful rise to power.
Middle East
Analyses of a Muslim Brotherhood-Linked Information Operation and a Facebook Network that Originated in Iran and Afghanistan
Stanford Internet Observatory
Many social media disinformation campaigns—and associated takedowns—have been linked to Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Egypt. But we believe this is the first takedown linked to opposing pro-Muslim Brotherhood actors.
Misc.
WhatsApp Wants to Host Your Intimate Chats. Don’t Fret—They’ll Be Deleted in a Week
WSJ
WhatsApp has introduced a setting that automatically deletes messages after seven days, a move aimed at encouraging users to feel comfortable chatting in confidence.
Ransomware Gangs Not Honoring Ransom Payments for Stolen Data
Tripwire
Security researchers observed that multiple ransomware gangs are not honoring the ransom payments received from victims for their stolen data.
Jobs
Senior Researcher / Project Lead
ASPI ICPC
ASPI’s International Cyber Policy Centre (ICPC) has an outstanding opportunity for a senior researcher to lead a one-year project looking at leadership networks across Asia. Interviews will start immediately.
Senior Strategic Communications Officer
ASPI
The Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) has an outstanding opportunity for a highly experienced, strategic communications professional to contribute to the launch of a new, high profile global project. The Senior Strategic Communications Officer 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. The position will work closely with the Executive Director and the Institutes’ s International Cyber Policy Centre.