U.S. spy agency touts collaboration center with private industry | Jack Ma's Ant in talks to share data trove with state firms | How China spreads its propaganda version of life in Xinjiang
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The U.S. National Security Agency, in a rare move, on Tuesday showcased a new office aimed at greater collaboration with U.S. private sector defense, technology and telecommunications companies. Reuters
Ant Group Co. is in talks with Chinese state-owned enterprises to create a credit-scoring company that will put the fintech giant’s proprietary consumer data under regulators’ purview, according to people familiar with the matter. The Wall Street Journal
Beijing is trying to use savvier and more forceful methods to broadcast its political messages to a worldwide audience. And Western internet platforms like Twitter and YouTube are playing a key part… A months long analysis of more than 3,000 of the videos by The New York Times and ProPublica found evidence of an influence campaign orchestrated by the Chinese government. The New York Times
ASPI ICPC
World
Cyber insurance market faces a reckoning as losses pile up
The Record
@AdamJanofsky
Cyber insurers reported a spike in losses in 2020 as companies across a wide range of industries were hit by costly cyberattacks and ransomware incidents, which will likely drive up premiums and put pressure on insurers to lower limits going forward.
Australia
Privacy office’s Clearview AI inquiry still going
InnovationAus
@denhamsadler
The Australian privacy watchdog’s investigation into controversial facial recognition service Clearview AI is still ongoing nearly 12 months after it was launched, as the company faces legal action across Europe.
Australian Law Could Force Facebook, Google to Strip Content
Bloomberg
@JasonVScott @vladsavov
Australia’s government has passed legislation to reduce cyber abuse, allowing it to force social media platforms such as Facebook Inc. and Google to remove harmful material within 24 hours or be fined as much as $415,000.
China
Jack Ma’s Ant in Talks to Share Data Trove With State Firms
The Wall Street Journal
@jingyanghk @xieyuxy
Ant Group Co. is in talks with Chinese state-owned enterprises to create a credit-scoring company that will put the fintech giant’s proprietary consumer data under regulators’ purview, according to people familiar with the matter. The new entity, which could be established as soon as the third quarter of this year, could result in Ant ceding some control over the voluminous data it has on the financial habits of Chinese citizens. More than one billion individuals use Ant’s Alipay app to spend, borrow or invest their money, and the information that Ant has collected and used has been the secret sauce behind the company’s success in recent years.
Find out more about Ant Group via our re-launched Mapping China’s Technology Giants project
‘We Are Very Free’ How China Spreads Its Propaganda Version of Life in Xinjiang
The New York Times
@jeffykao @zhonggg @paulmozur @alizauf
These and thousands of other videos are meant to look like unfiltered glimpses of life in Xinjiang, the western Chinese region where the Communist Party has carried out repressive policies against Uyghurs and other predominantly Muslim ethnic minorities. Most of the clips carry no logos or other signs that they are official propaganda. But taken together, the videos begin to reveal clues of broader coordination — such as the English subtitles in clips posted to YouTube and other Western platforms..It all amounts to one of China’s most elaborate efforts to shape global opinion. Beijing is trying to use savvier and more forceful methods to broadcast its political messages to a worldwide audience. And Western internet platforms like Twitter and YouTube are playing a key part.
Read our recent report Strange bedfellows on Xinjiang: The CCP, fringe media and US social media platforms
Has the death knell sounded for cryptocurrencies?
Financial Times
@mjruehl Kenji Kawase @JKynge
Has a death knell for cryptocurrencies been sounded? A more than 50 per cent fall in the price of bitcoin since mid-April reveals a deep sense of alarm in the cryptocurrency sector over a crackdown by China and other governments. China’s largest bitcoin producing provinces are intensifying a campaign to shut down cryptocurrency mining operations. Sichuan, a hydropower-rich province in south-western China, has ordered the 26 largest local mines to stop operating.
USA
Amid big hacks, U.S. spy agency touts collaboration center with private industry
Reuters
@Bing_Chris
The U.S. National Security Agency, in a rare move, on Tuesday showcased a new office aimed at greater collaboration with U.S. private sector defense, technology and telecommunications companies. The Cybersecurity Collaboration Center is part of a plan to help the agency develop deeper ties and learn about active hacking campaigns from U.S. companies that are continuously targeted by hacking groups long-tracked by the spy agency, said NSA Director of Cybersecurity Rob Joyce.
US takes down Iran-linked news sites, alleges disinformation
Associated Press
@IsabelDeBre @etuckerAP
American authorities seized a range of Iran’s state-linked news website domains they accused of spreading disinformation, the U.S. Justice Department said Tuesday, a move that appeared to be a far-reaching crackdown on Iranian media amid heightened tensions between the two countries. The Justice Department said 33 of the seized websites were used by the Iranian Islamic Radio and Television Union, which was singled out by the U.S. government last October for what officials described as efforts to spread disinformation and sow discord among American voters ahead of the 2020 presidential election.
Anti-vax group mounts legal blitz to sow disinformation against vaccinations
The Guardian
@allyevillarreal
Texas group the Informed Consent Action Network has capitalized on fear surrounding supposed vaccine mandates.
FBI Director Makes the Case for Increased Staffing
Government Executive
@courtneybuble
On Wednesday, FBI Director Christopher Wray defended the Biden administration’s requested fiscal 2022 budget boost for additional staffing to better address pressing cyber, terrorism and foreign threats..In making the case for more cyber-focused positions, Wray said over the past year the agency “has seen a wider-than-ever range of cyber actors threaten Americans’ safety, security, and confidence in our digitally connected world;” however, “these threats will not disappear when the pandemic ends.” In the past year, the FBI has also faced the Colonial Pipeline attack and SolarWinds breach, and is opening a new China-related counterintelligence investigation every 10 to 12 hours.
“Ridiculous Case”: Juror Criticizes DOJ for Charging Scientist With Hiding Ties to China
The Intercept
@MaraHvistendahl
A lot was hanging on the case, which was brought under a controversial Trump-era Justice Department effort called the China Initiative. The FBI had spent 21 months tailing Anming Hu, a professor in the University of Tennessee, Knoxville’s department of mechanical, aerospace, and biomedical engineering, following him to and from work and even the grocery store in an effort to build a case against him. After an FBI agent led the university to believe that Hu had ties to the Chinese military, Hu was fired.
North-East Asia
Tech groups in Taiwan accused of locking up migrant workers
Financial Times
@kathrinhille @kanainagaki
Documents show some foreign employees are barred from leaving dormitories except for work.
South-East Asia
Rights group: Facebook amplified Myanmar military propaganda
Associated Press
@BarbaraOrtutay
Facebook's recommendation algorithm amplifies military propaganda and other material that breaches the company's own policies in Myanmar following a military takeover in February, a new report by the rights group Global Witness says.
UK
Europe
This little-known payments start-up is now Europe’s third-biggest fintech
CNBC
@RYAN_BROWNE_
Mollie was a relatively little-known company before Covid-19. Now, it’s one of Europe’s biggest fintechs.
NATO hopes to launch new defense tech accelerator by 2023
Defense News
@VivienneMachi
Alliance members agreed at the 31st annual summit, held June 14 in Brussels, to launch a new initiative dubbed the Defence Innovation Accelerator of the North Atlantic, or DIANA, meant to speed up trans-Atlantic cooperation on critical technologies, and help NATO work more closely with private-sector entities, academia and other non-governmental entities.
Teenagers on trial for online abuse did if for ‘laughs’, subscribers
The Sydney Morning Herald
@nicolasv069
Thirteen teenagers of various backgrounds and religions from around France are facing potential jail time for death and rape threats in the first cyber bullying case tried at a new court set up to prosecute online crimes.
Four French executives charged with spying on opposition Libya, Egypt figures
Yahoo Finance
Prosecutors have charged four executives at two French companies accused of aiding Libya's former strongman Muammar Gaddafi and Egyptian authorities to spy on opposition figures who were later detained and tortured, a rights group said Tuesday... The firms are suspected of selling internet surveillance gear to Libya and Egypt, respectively, that was used to track down regime opponents.
John McAfee Reportedly Dead From Suspected Suicide In Spanish Jail
VICE
@lorenzofb
Spanish media reported the 75-year-old former antivirus pioneer was found dead in his cell after a Spanish court ruled in favor of his extradition to the United States to face tax fraud charges.
Telekom Austria may consider Huawei, ZTE for 5G networks-COO
Reuters
@Tech_Correspond
A1 Telekom Austria Group, an unit of Carlos Slim's America Movil, was open to considering Chinese vendors such as Huawei and ZTE for upcoming 5G networks in several countries, a top executive said.
Russia
Russia’s censorship agency asks Google to shut down ‘Smart Vote’ website
Meduza
Following a complaint from a Yekaterinburg lawyer, Russia’s federal censorship agency, Roskomnadzor (RKN), has sent a letter to Google asking the company to halt technical support for the website of Alexey Navalny’s “Smart Vote” initiative.
Africa
Senegal aims for digital sovereignty with new China-backed data centre
Reuters
Senegal will move all government data and digital platforms from foreign servers to a new national data centre in hopes of strengthening its digital sovereignty, the president said on Tuesday.. Financed with a Chinese loan and built with equipment and technical support from China's Huawei, the data centre will tap into global networks through an undersea cable as well as the country's own 6,000-km (3,730-mile) fibre optic network.
Misc
How I Found A Vulnerability To Hack iCloud Accounts and How Apple Reacted To It
The Zero Hack
@LaxmanMuthiyah
This article is about how I found a vulnerability on Apple forgot password endpoint that allowed me to takeover an iCloud account. The vulnerability is completely patched by Apple security team and it no longer works.
Tech Giants, Fearful of Proposals to Curb Them, Blitz Washington With Lobbying
The New York Times
@ceciliakang @dmccabe @kenvogel
In the days after lawmakers introduced legislation that could break the dominance of tech companies… Executives, lobbyists, and more than a dozen think tanks and advocacy groups paid by tech companies have swarmed Capitol offices, called and emailed lawmakers and their staff members, and written letters arguing there will be dire consequences for the industry and the country if the ideas become law.
Spies Like Us
Foreign Affairs
@AmyZegart
Technology is enabling nonstate actors to collect and analyze intelligence—sometimes more easily, more quickly, and better than governments.
Events
Research
Hybrid CoE - The European Centre of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats
European Centre of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats
Jukka Aukia
The use of non-state actors (NSAs) is a key element for China in creating hybrid threats. Democracies need to understand China’s NSA-related behaviour.
Digital News Report 2021
Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism
This year's report reveals new insights about digital news consumption based on a YouGov survey of over 92,000 online news consumers in 46 markets including India, Indonesia, Thailand, Nigeria, Colombia and Peru for the first time. The report looks at the impact of coronavirus on news consumption and on the economic prospects for publishers. It looks at progress on new paid online business models, trust and misinformation, local news, impartiality and fairness in news coverage.
The promise and perils of Artificial Intelligence partnerships
Observer Research Foundation
@d_jaishankar
AI can be a force for good. It has emerged as one technology of particular importance because of its role as an accelerator, its versatility, and its wide applicability. But challenges include standards-setting, supply chain resilience, talent retention, and data policy.
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.