YouTube bans anti-vaccine content | Russia arrests top cybersecurity exec in treason case | Emergency laws to be passed to fend off major cyberattacks in Australia
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YouTube is to remove videos that spread misinformation about all vaccines, as it steps up a crackdown on harmful content posted during the coronavirus pandemic. The Washington Post
Russian authorities have arrested the chief executive of a leading Russian cybersecurity company on suspicion of state treason, a court said on Wednesday, sending a chill through Russia's IT and business sectors. Reuters
New laws will be urgently passed to help Australian businesses fend off major cyber attacks in a range of new sectors including banking, groceries and universities, while businesses continue to express serious concerns about the government’s proposed overhaul of the critical infrastructure regime. The Sydney Morning Herald
ASPI ICPC
World
YouTube bans all anti-vaccine misinformation.
The New York Times
@daveyalba
The new set of policies will cover not just the Covid-19 vaccines or long-approved vaccines against diseases like measles and hepatitis B, but also general claims about vaccines, YouTube said.
Managing harmful vaccine content on YouTube YouTube Official Blog
Australia
Emergency laws to be passed to fend off major cyber attacks
The Sydney Morning Herald
@Gallo_Ways
New laws will be urgently passed to help Australian businesses fend off major cyber attacks in a range of new sectors including banking, groceries and universities, while businesses continue to express serious concerns about the government’s proposed overhaul of the critical infrastructure regime.
New powers to protect critical infrastructure
The Australian
@bennpackham
Parliament’s intelligence and security committee has recommended emergency powers be swiftly legislated to counter growing threats to critical infrastructure. The committee, in a report tabled on Wednesday morning, calls for rapid amendments to critical infrastructure legislation to expand the range of sectors to be protected under the Act, and introduce new “last resort” government assistance measures to crisis scenarios.
Critical Infrastructure Bill should be split to swiftly give government step-in powers: PJCIS
ZDNet
@campbell_kwan
The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security (PJCIS) has recommended for the Bill that would provide government with step-in powers whenever an organisation suffers from a cyber attack to be swiftly passed.Cyber: It’s the new battlefield and we need to be armed
The Australian
@SenPaterson
There is clear recognition from government and industry we need to do more to protect our nation against sophisticated cyber threats, particularly against our critical infrastructure. Any facility, supply chain or communication network that, if destroyed or compromised, would significantly harm our way of life is considered critical infrastructure to Australia.
CNN Restricts Access to Facebook Pages in Australia
The Wall Street Journal
@benmullin
CNN said it restricted access to the pages following a ruling from that country’s high court that makes news organizations legally liable for comments on their Facebook posts.
China
China’s Xi Calls For More R&D Spending and High-Tech Talent
Bloomberg
President Xi Jinping is targeting a significant boost in the number of core technology professionals and research and development spending in China by 2025, as the country bids to enhance its tech-competitiveness. Xi urged China to embrace self-reliance in high tech industries to enhance competition among countries, in comments at a human-resources meeting in Beijing held Monday and Tuesday, according to a report from the official Xinhua News Agency.
How the Huawei Case Raised Fears of ‘Hostage Diplomacy’ by China
The New York Times
@ktbenner @SangerNYT
The talks between the Justice Department and a top executive from Huawei Technologies, the Chinese telecommunications giant, had stretched over more than 12 months and two presidential administrations, and boiled down to one overarching dispute: whether Meng Wanzhou, daughter of Huawei’s founder, would admit to any wrongdoing.
US-China business: the necessary reinvention of Huawei
Financial Times
@kathrinhille @ellieolcott @JKynge
By agreeing to a deferred charges deal over allegations of violating US sanctions against Iran, Meng averted the threat of a lengthy prison sentence and closed a chapter that she said had turned her life upside down. But her company expects to remain a target of US prosecution and sanctions for years to come, and is only just figuring out how to do business under that pressure.
LinkedIn is blocking the Chinese profiles of journalists and researchers over 'prohibited content' not approved by the government
Business Insider
@KatieCanales1
LinkedIn said it adheres to Chinese laws to operate there, but one blocked user told Insider the firm "made the decision to choose profits over truth."
Will the US or China win the race for global quantum dominance?
New Scientist
@sparkes
QUANTUM computers and networks, once merely physicists’ playthings, are increasingly seen as both a national security threat and a potential asset, with the theoretical ability to crack current encryption methods, but also improve artificial intelligence. The recently announced security pact between the UK, the US and Australia drew a lot of attention for its focus on nuclear-powered submarines, but this AUKUS deal also promised to share quantum technologies.
“Mini-programs” took over Chinese platforms. Now they’re being used to contact trace — and undermine user privacy.
Rest of World
@dong_mengyu
The programs track where you travel, shop, and even eat dumplings.
USA
Senators introduce cyber bill to mandate reporting on ransomware and critical infrastructure attacks
CNN
@Geneva_Sands
The top senators on the Homeland Security Committee introduced legislation on Tuesday to require critical infrastructure companies to report cyberattacks to the federal government and to mandate that most organizations tell the federal government if they make ransomware payments.
Chinese tech firm accused of human rights violations sidesteps sanctions
Axios
@lachlan
A tweak to U.S. export restrictions is letting a prominent Chinese tech company sidestep measures designed to punish the firm over its alleged involvement in the repression of Muslims within the country, records show. Why it matters: The artificial intelligence company SenseTime's strategy to bypass those measures shows how companies deemed national security risks — or accused of complicity in human rights abuses — can bypass U.S. restrictions.
Network of Right-Wing Health Care Providers Is Making Millions Off Hydroxychloroquine and Ivermectin, Hacked Data Reveals
The Intercept
@micahflee
The data also reveals that 72,000 people paid at least $6.7 million for Covid-19 consultations promoted by America’s Frontline Doctors and vaccine conspiracist Simone Gold.
Oath Keepers Had Money Troubles After Capitol Riot, Leaked Emails Show
The Daily Beast
@KELLYWEILL
After members of the Oath Keepers appeared on the frontlines of the Jan. 6 Capitol attack, the organization’s inboxes were flooded with emails. Some came from prospective members looking to join the group. Others came from members who wanted out. The would-be Oath Keepers and defectors had a common complaint: They had sent money to the far-right group and never heard from it again.
U.S. needs to work with Europe to slow China's innovation rate, Raimondo says
CNBC
@amanda_m_macias @kaylatausche
"We have to work with our European allies to deny China the most advanced technology so that they can't catch up in critical areas like semiconductors."
Analysis | Will the U.S. follow the E.U. playbook to crack down on Silicon Valley giants?
Washington Post
@viaCristiano
A summit may show where the sides diverge on tech competition issues.
Snapchat, TikTok, Instagram face pressure to stop illegal drug sales as overdose deaths soar
Washington Post
@rachelerman @GerritD
The DEA called out TikTok and Snapchat on Monday for serving as hosts for illegal drug sales.
North-East Asia
Japan, US risk losing military tech edge to China, Tokyo official says
South China Morning Post
@owenschurchill
Countries including Japan and the United States are on the brink of losing their military technological edge over China and should deepen bilateral defence cooperation to shore up their supremacy, a senior Japanese defence official said on Monday.
Central Asia
#DoNotTouchMyClothes: Afghan Women Protest Taliban Restrictions on Rights
The New York Times
@anna_p_k
A social media campaign within the Afghan diaspora celebrates pre-Taliban dress traditions, and mourns the loss of that freedom.
Europe
Google Gets Fresh Complaint at EU Over Search Engine Tweaks
Bloomberg
@aoifewhite101 @StephanieBodoni
Google is on a collision course with advertisers and publishers who fired off a fresh antitrust complaint with the European Union in the run up to the U.S. tech giant’s court fight over a record $5 billion antitrust fine.
Macron Is Annoying U.S. and Key EU Allies With His ‘Europe First’ Strategy
Bloomberg
@albertonardelli
Officials and diplomats across the European Union are getting really frustrated with the French. The scope of what some are calling President Emmanuel Macron’s “Europe First” strategy — which aims to make the EU more independent from Washington for defense and sensitive technologies — is causing concern in many EU member states and hampering western efforts to forge a united response to the rise of China.
Russia
Russia arrests top cybersecurity executive in treason case
Reuters
@zverev_live @balmforthtom
Russian authorities have arrested the chief executive of a leading Russian cybersecurity company on suspicion of state treason, a court said on Wednesday, sending a chill through Russia's IT and business sectors.
Russia threatens to block YouTube after German channels are deleted over coronavirus misinformation
Washington Post
@rachelpannett
Russia has threatened to block YouTube unless the Google-owned video service restores two German-language channels managed by Russia’s state media company RT that were deleted after they published what YouTube called “misinformation” about covid-19 and coronavirus vaccines.
Canada
Canada's decision on Huawei 5G gear due in 'coming weeks' -Trudeau
Reuters
@SchererSteve
Canada's decision on whether to ban Huawei 5G gear, as all the other members of the so-called Five Eyes intelligence-sharing network have done, is likely to be made in "coming weeks," Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Tuesday.
Misc
Opinion | The Internet became less free this year — again
Washington Post
Opinion by the Editorial Board
The Internet is becoming less free — more and more so. Freedom House’s annual “Freedom on the Net” report found that in 2021 the rights of Web users declined for the 11th year in a row. The primary threats may seem contradictory, but they’re intertwined: a lack of regulation that enables abuse by powerful technology companies and too-aggressive regulation that is abusive itself.
Leaked Documents Show How Amazon’s Astro Robot Tracks Everything You Do
VICE
@mjgault @josephfcox
Leaked meetings show the robot will heavily rely on facial recognition and user behavior, but sources who worked on Astro say the robot is flawed.
Threat Actors Weaponize Telegram Bots to Compromise PayPal Accounts
Threatpost
A campaign is stealing one-time password tokens to gain access to PayPal, Apple Pay and Google Pay, among others.
Private proof-of-vaccination app may have exposed hundreds of thousands of users' personal data
CBC News
@sarahcrgr
Private proof-of-vaccination app Portpass exposed personal information, including the driver's licences, of what might be hundreds of thousands of users by leaving its website unsecured.
Events
Beyond 5G: Standards for Sixth Generation Networks
CSIS
Wednesday, October 6, 2021 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm CSIS Headquarters
Please join us for a virtual discussion on global sixth generation network standards with experts Susie Armstrong, Senior Vice President of Engineering, Qualcomm, Micaela Giuhat, Director of 5G Policy and External Engagements, Microsoft, and Travis Russell, Director of Cyber Security, Oracle Communications.
Research
Jobs
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.