CREW: Nearly 900 Secret Service employees tested positive for COVID-19 between March 1, 2020 and March 9, 2021, according to government records obtained by CREW. The vast majority served in protection jobs, either as Special Agents or in the Uniformed Division. The records obtained by CREW show that in the first year of the pandemic,… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Defense
Have we reached peak ransomware?
ZDNet – “How the internet’s biggest security problem has grown and what happens next. A string of high-profile cyberattacks has made ransomware an impossible issue to ignore – in fact, even world leaders are talking about it. Will this be enough to make cyber criminals think twice? Ransomware has become such a significant problem that… Continue Reading
Atlantic Council – China-US competition: Measuring global influence
“There is a lot of discussion these days about China’s growing influence around the world relative to America’s—and how this sprawling contest for clout is shaping the future of geopolitics.Now we have a way to track and quantify this intensifying competition across time using the Formal Bilateral Influence Capacity (FBIC) Index, a new measure of… Continue Reading
Deep Fakes and National Security
CRS In Focus – Deep Fakes and National Security, Updated June 8, 2021: “Deep fakes”—a term that first emerged in 2017 to describe realistic photo, audio, video, and other forgeries generated with artificial intelligence (AI) technologies—could present a variety of national security challenges in the years to come. As these technologies continue to mature, they… Continue Reading
CRS Defense Primer: Emerging Technologies
CRS In Focus – Defense Primer: Emerging Technologies, Updated June 8, 2021: “Both U.S. national strategy documents and Congress’s own bipartisan Future of Defense Task Force Report have identified a number of emerging technologies that could have a disruptive impact on U.S. national security in the years to come. These technologies include artificial intelligence, lethal… Continue Reading
The World’s Northernmost Town Is Changing Dramatically
Scientific American – Climate change is bringing tourism and tension to Longyearbyen on the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard. “…The consequences are extensive. The thawing permafrost, which can heave or slump, has ruptured roads and exposed the macabre contents of old graves. Extremely windy, heavy snowstorms—once rare—have triggered deadly avalanches on the mountain slopes looming above… Continue Reading
Another Nobelium Cyberattack
ZDNET – Microsoft warns of current Nobelium phishing campaign impersonating USAID: “Russian-backed group gained control of email marketing platform used by USAID to ramp up its attacks…” Microsoft Blog: “This week we observed cyberattacks by the threat actor Nobelium targeting government agencies, think tanks, consultants, and non-governmental organizations. This wave of attacks targeted approximately 3,000 email accounts at more than 150 different organizations. While organizations in the… Continue Reading
US Government Hides Some Of Its Darkest Secrets At Department Of Energy
The Department of Energy controls many ‘black projects’ that live outside of the limelight that is intrinsic to the DoD and the intel community. “…the fact that there is a wholly separate cabinet-level department of the U.S. government that is arguably even more opaque in terms of secrecy and oversight than the Department of Defense.… Continue Reading
Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, May 23, 2021
Via LLRX – Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, May 23, 2021 – Privacy and security issues impact every aspect of our lives – home, work, travel, education, health and medical records – to name but a few. On a weekly basis Pete Weiss highlights articles and information that focus on the… Continue Reading
Truth, Lies, and Automation – How Language Models Could Change Disinformation
Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service, Center for Security and Emerging Technology: Truth, Lies, and Automation How Language Models Could Change Disinformation. Ben Buchanan, Andrew Lohn, Micah Musser, Katerina Sedova. May 2021. “Growing popular and industry interest in high-performing natural language generation models has led to concerns that such models could be used to… Continue Reading
Deep Fakes and National Security
CRS In Focus – Updated May 7, 2021 Deep Fakesand National Security – “Deep fakes”—a term that first emerged in 2017 to describe realistic photo, audio, video, and other forgeries generated with artificial intelligence (AI) technologies—could present a variety of national security challenges in the years to come. As these technologies continue to mature, they… Continue Reading
Science and Technology Issues in the 117th Congress
CRS Report – Science and Technology Issues in the 117th Congress. May 5, 2021: “The federal government supports scientific and technological advancement directly by funding and performing research and development, and indirectly by creating and maintaining policies that encourage private sector efforts. Additionally, the federal government regulates many aspects of S&T activities. This report briefly… Continue Reading
