Blocking exports and raising tariffs is a bad defense against industrial cyber espionage, study shows
Supply-chain decoupling doesn’t stop rival nations from hacking each other and can make it worse. A cyber-espionage expert explains what does work.
Gotta Track’em All: Data Privacy and Saudi Arabia’s Pokémon Go Acquisition
In a given month, more than 100 million people open Pokémon Go—the app that allows users to superimpose the world’s most profitable media franchise onto reality using only their smartphone. Using their phone camera and a flick of the wrist, they captured tiny digital monsters at the park, at the office, sometimes in active minefields, and, yes, in the bathroom.
Who else was watching?
Secret Cyber Wars: Why States Are Increasingly Turning to Economic Espionage and How Cyber Proxies Play a Key Role
In September 2001, operatives for Procter & Gamble were caught diving in dumpsters outside a Unilever facility in Chicago in search of documents and other discarded items containing confidential information about Unilever’s hair care products business. To avoid litigation and the negative publicity that often accompanies such disputes, the companies quietly reached a negotiated settlement where Procter & Gamble agreed to not use any of the information obtained. This early example illustrates the ongoing vulnerability companies face regarding data security. In today’s corporate environment where digital data storage is the norm, companies now have to be wary of not only paper documents but also discarded storage devices like hard drives, USBs, and even old office equipment that might store digital data.
Hackers for Hire: Proxy Warfare in the Cyber Realm
In February 2018, the cybersecurity firm FireEye published a report detailing the activities of a hacker group called APT37, which had carried out a series of cyberattacks across Asia. The report assessed “with high confidence” that the group was acting on behalf of the North Korean government. This is just one example of a rising trend, as states increasingly turn to “cyber proxies”—hacker groups that carry out cyber operations on behalf of or in concert with nation states.
Espionage attempts like the SolarWinds hack are inevitable, so it’s safer to focus on defense – not retaliation
In the wake of the major espionage operation in which people alleged to be Russian government agents infiltrated the digital networks of the U.S. Defense, Treasury and Homeland Security departments – as well as other government agencies and private companies – President Joe Biden is considering how to respond. It’s not clear exactly what data the hackers actually stole in the time they had access, roughly from March through December 2020, but they exploited software made by the Texas-based firm SolarWinds to gain access to key research and security information, including research for future nuclear weapons.
Hackers could shut down satellites – or turn them into weapons
Last month, SpaceX became the operator of the world’s largest active satellite constellation. As of the end of January, the company had 242 satellites orbiting the planet with plans to launch 42,000 over the next decade. This is part of its ambitious project to provide internet access across the globe. The race to put satellites in space is on, with Amazon, U.K.-based OneWeb and other companies chomping at the bit to place thousands of satellites in orbit in the coming months.