U.S. Says Chinese, Iranian Hackers Seek to Steal Coronavirus Research | Merkel outraged by Russian hack | China fears over cable too dear to use
U.S. Says Chinese, Iranian Hackers Seek to Steal Coronavirus Research | Merkel outraged by Russian hack | China fears over cable too dear to use
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Chinese hackers are targeting American universities, pharmaceutical and other health-care firms in a bid to steal intellectual property related to coronavirus treatments and vaccines and the intrusions may be jeopardizing progress on medical research, U.S. officials said in an alert Wednesday. The Wall Street Journal
Chancellor Angela Merkel used strong words on Wednesday condemning an “outrageous” cyberattack by Russia’s foreign intelligence service on the German Parliament, her personal email account included. The New York Times
An Australian taxpayer-funded internet cable to Papua New Guinea is operating at a fraction of its capacity because it is too expensive for private sector providers to use. Sources told The Australian that PNG’s state-owned Data Co was using the project to cross-subsidise a $274m Chinese debt for a domestic cable delivered by Huawei, in a deal estimated to be 30-50 per cent overpriced. The Australian
ASPI ICPC
Is TikTok Safe? Concerns About Data, Privacy and Censorship Abound
Inside Edition
But is TikTok as innocuous as its jokes, lip-syncs and viral dance challenges suggest? Australian Strategic Policy Institute analyst Fergus Ryan thinks otherwise. “They want the platform to be light, entertaining and funny and they have made several statements about how they don’t really want it to be a political space,” Ryan told InsideEdition.com.
World
Microsoft is opening up a treasure trove of its cyberattack threat intelligence to everybody — even noncustomers — to help stop coronavirus-related scams
Business Insider
The free access to security data adds to dozens of ways the software giant has stepped forward to help during the pandemic and further represents a growing leadership role in the cybersecurity industry, analysts and experts say.
Australia
Defence has imagined modern warfare and Australia is not prepared
ABC
@SeanRubinsztein
The report finds Australia is unprepared for an increasingly likely cyberwar. "In many ways, we may not even know when a cyber attack or indeed when a cyber campaign against Australian interests has begun," says Professor Medcalf.
Service NSW emails hacked: customers' information accessed
The Sydney Morning Herald
@Laura_R_chung
Customer information from Service NSW was accessed when the email accounts of 47 staff members were hacked last month. The government agency said the hack was limited to the contents of those email accounts which contained information about transactions made over the phone or over the counter at centres.
Looking Ahead: Australia and China after the Pandemic
Asia Society
The aggressiveness of China’s response to criticism of its early handling of the COVID-19 pandemic combined with a global misinformation campaign and use of social media to stoke division has surprised even veteran China watchers.
Google's Australian revenue hits $4.8b
The Sydney Morning Herald
@zoesam93
Google has sidestepped the shrinking advertising market to post record Australian revenue of $4.8 billion, sparking immediate calls for the search giant to share a slice of its local income with publishers.
China
Coronavirus: China’s new army of tough-talking diplomats
BBC
@bbcjlandale
China has dispatched an increasingly vocal cadre of diplomats out into the world of social media to take on all comers with, at times, an eye-blinking frankness. Their aim is to defend China's handling of the coronavirus pandemic and challenge those who question Beijing's version of events. So they launch salvos of persistent tweets and posts from their embassies around the world. And they hold little back, deploying sarcasm and aggression in equal measure.
US
U.S. Says Chinese, Iranian Hackers Seek to Steal Coronavirus Research
The Wall Street Journal
@Glubold @dnvolz
Chinese hackers are targeting American universities, pharmaceutical and other health-care firms in a bid to steal intellectual property related to coronavirus treatments and vaccines and the intrusions may be jeopardizing progress on medical research, U.S. officials said in an alert Wednesday.
The United States Condemns Attempts by PRC-Affiliated Actors to Steal American COVID-19 Research
Department of State
@SecPompeo
The United States condemns attempts by cyber actors and non-traditional collectors affiliated with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to steal U.S. intellectual property and data related to COVID-19 research, as announced in a May 13, 2020 warning by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. The United States calls on the PRC to cease this malicious activity.
Taiwan Firm to Build Chip Factory in U.S.
The Wall Street Journal
@BobDavis187 @Kate_okeeffe @AsaFitch
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world’s largest contract manufacturer of silicon chips, is set to announce plans to build an advanced chip factory in Arizona as U.S. concerns grow about dependence on Asia for the critical technology. The plans for the plant, likely to cost billions of dollars, come as the Trump administration has sought to jump-start development of new chip factories in the US to the US’s heavy reliance on Taiwan, China, South Korea.
The United States Can’t Afford to Turn Away Chinese Talent
Foreign Policy
@EBKania @LindsayPGorman
American policymakers are grappling with complex questions about how to recalibrate the character of U.S.-China economic interdependence and technological entanglement. But some of the answers that have been proposed are far too simple and may backfire on U.S. competitiveness.
Star-Studded Coronavirus Panel Canceled After Flak Over Huawei Sponsorship
The Wall Street Journal
@DanStrumpf
An effort by Huawei Technologies Co. to dip its toe into the stormy waters of a U.S. political debate backfired after organizers canceled a star-studded online panel sponsored by the Chinese company to discuss the coronavirus and its impact on minority communities.
Current and ex-employees allege Google drastically rolled back diversity and inclusion programs
NBC News
Google has significantly rolled back its diversity and inclusion initiatives in an apparent effort to avoid being perceived as anti-conservative, according to eight current and former employees.
These disinformation researchers saw the coronavirus 'infodemic' coming
NBC News
Joan Donovan, Claire Wardle and Kate Starbird have been preparing for this moment for a decade, capturing the data of the internet, tracking disinformation campaigns and calling for traditional and social media platforms to take responsibility for their spread.
An Ex-Google Employee Turned 'Whistleblower' and QAnon Fan Made 'Plandemic' Go Viral
Vice
Zach Vorhies leaked documents to the right-wing group Project Veritas, then became a committed anti-vaxxer and promoter of QAnon. In an April video, he laid out his plan to promote 'Plandemic.'
Southeast Asia
China fears over cable too dear to use
The Australian
An Australian taxpayer-funded internet cable to Papua New Guinea is operating at a fraction of its capacity because it is too expensive for private sector providers to use. The Australian can reveal that the PNG section of the $136m, 4700km Coral Sea Cable system has failed to lower internet prices to the country, as promised by the Australian government, because it was handed to a struggling state-owned enterprise that is charging uncompetitive prices. Sources told The Australian that PNG’s state-owned Data Co was using the project to cross-subsidise a $274m Chinese debt for a domestic cable delivered by Huawei, in a deal estimated to be 30-50 per cent overpriced.
Europe
Merkel Is ‘Outraged’ by Russian Hack but Struggling to Respond
The New York TImes
Chancellor Angela Merkel used strong words on Wednesday condemning an “outrageous” cyberattack by Russia’s foreign intelligence service on the German Parliament, her personal email account included. Russia, she said, was pursuing “a strategy of hybrid warfare.”
Germany issues arrest warrant for Russian suspect in parliament hack - newspaper
Reuters
German federal prosecutors issued an arrest warrant for an individual they suspected of hacking into the German parliament’s computer systems in 2015 on behalf of Russia’s GRU intelligence service, the Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported on Tuesday.
Scammers steal $10 million from Norway's state investment fund
Bleeping Computer
@Ionut_Ilascu
Fraudsters running business email compromise scams were able to swindle Norfund, Norway’s state investment fund, out of $10 million. The attackers took their time before pulling the trigger and took action to ensure that the theft would be discovered long after they got the money.
Russia
All top cyber villains speak Russian, says computer anti-virus guru
TASS
Russia trains the best programmers in the world, and, as a consequence, the world’s best hackers often speak Russian, the founder and CEO of the Russian antivirus software provider Kaspersky Lab said in an interview with TASS.
Africa
China Telecom Global and Angola Cables Expand Long-Haul Digital Connectivity between Asia, Africa and Latam
Total Telecom
China Telecom Global (CTG), a leading global ICT services provider empowering the digital economy has today announced that the company has selected multinational ICT operator, Angola Cables, as their preferred carrier to bolster their long-haul links between Asia, Africa and Latam.
Read more about China Telecom via our Mapping China’s Technology Giants project
Misc
Apple Acquires Startup NextVR that Broadcasts VR Content
Bloomberg
The acquisition may help Apple’s development of VR and AR headsets with accompanying software and content. NextVR supplies content to several existing VR headsets, including Facebook Inc.’s Oculus and devices from Sony Corp., HTC Corp. and Lenovo.
