Swire, Peter. The USA Freedom Act: A Partial Response to European Concerns about NSA Surveillance. Working Paper GTJMCE 2015-1. Sam Nunn School of International Affairs – Georgia Institute of Technology. “In June 2015, the Congress adopted and President Obama signed the USA Freedom Act, the biggest pro-privacy change to U.S. intelligence law in nearly 40… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: E-Records
Harvard Hacked
“On June 19, Harvard discovered an intrusion on the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and Central Administration information technology networks. Since discovering this intrusion, Harvard has been working with external information security experts and federal law enforcement to investigate the incident, protect the information stored on our systems, and strengthen IT environments across the University.… Continue Reading
NSA global surveillance network knows all?
Two Part Series from The Intercept [Part 1 – XKEYSCORE: NSA’s Google for the World’s Private Communications] and Part 2 – Behind the Curtain A Look at the Inner Workings of NSA’s XKEYSCORE “The sheer quantity of communications that XKEYSCORE [global Internet surveillance network run by NSA] processes, filters and queries is stunning. Around the… Continue Reading
Unisys Security Insights – Report for US
“Consumers in the U.S. are most concerned about data breaches at retailers and government agencies. U.S. consumers indicated relatively lower levels of concern about data breaches at other organizations such as airlines, healthcare and telecom companies. Interestingly, the perceived threat of data breaches is low for banks and utilities, possibly reflecting traditional high levels of… Continue Reading
GAO – Bank and Other Depository Regulators Need Better Data Analytics
Cybersecurity: Bank and Other Depository Regulators Need Better Data Analytics and Depository Institutions Want More Usable Threat Information, GAO-15-509: Published: Jul 2, 2015. Publicly Released: Jul 2, 2015. “Regulators use a risk-based examination approach to oversee the adequacy of information security at depository institutions—banks, thrifts, and credit unions—but could better target future examinations by analyzing… Continue Reading
Secret court authorizes continued telephone metadata collection
The Guardian UK: “After a decade in the shadows, a secretive surveillance court that authorises the bulk collection of American telephone records seized on its last chance to show off a little personality on Tuesday [June 30, 2015]. “Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose, well, at least for 180 days,” wrote judge Michael… Continue Reading
OPM – Actions to Strengthen Cybersecurity and Protect Critical IT Systems
“The recent intrusions into U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) systems that house personnel and background investigation data for Federal employees and other individuals have raised questions about the security of OPM data and the integrity of its Information Technology (IT) assets. Since Director Archuleta arrived at OPM, she has led the agency in taking… Continue Reading
GAO Report – Recent Data Breaches Illustrate Need for Strong Controls across Federal Agencies
Cybersecurity: Recent Data Breaches Illustrate Need for Strong Controls across Federal Agencies, GAO-15-725T: Published: Jun 24, 2015. Publicly Released: Jun 24, 2015 “GAO has identified a number of challenges federal agencies face in addressing threats to their cybersecurity, including the following: Designing and implementing a risk-based cybersecurity program. Enhancing oversight of contractors providing IT services.… Continue Reading
Job Opening – New Librarian of Congress
The Atlantic – Robinson Meyer: Experts say that a new librarian should digitize more works, raise more money—and use email. “The current librarian, James Billington, has held the title since his appointment by President Reagan in 1987. Though named by the president and confirmed by the Senate, the Librarian doesn’t change with every new White… Continue Reading
Massive Government Data Breach Even Worse than Reported
EPIC: “A Congressional hearing on the Office of Personnel Management data breach has now revealed one of the worst data breaches in US history. The agency initially reported that the personal information of 4 million government employees was obtained, but news reports suggest the breach was much larger–exposing the social security numbers of more than… Continue Reading
UK: Information Security Breaches Survey 2015
PWC: “We have been commissioned by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) to survey companies across the UK on cyber security incidents and emerging trends…The key observations from the 2015 survey were: The number of security breaches has increased, the scale and cost has nearly doubled. Eleven percent of respondents changed the nature… Continue Reading
Report – hacker had access to U.S. security clearance data for one year
Follow up to previous posting, Massive hack of federal personnel files included security-clearance database, again via Washington Post: “The recently disclosed breach of the Office of Personnel Management’s security-clearance computer system took place a year ago, giving Chinese government intruders access to sensitive data for a year, according to new information. The considerable lag time between breach… Continue Reading
