Information Security & Occasional Forays Into Adjacent Realms
Incroyable! Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers have developed what could very well be the 'holy grail' of submarine-to-surface communications. Monikered TARF, the system ostensibly converts SONAR to RADAR with no mid-processing steps required. Absolutely superb work, and today's Must Read.
via David E. Sanger (author of 'The Perfect Weapon') comes this frank discussion of the true nature of war - in this case, cyber-war) and the effect (some might say 'affectation') of certain population groups (whether dis- or en- franchised) therein. Certainly, this week's Must Read.
"In my national security reporting for the New York Times, I’ve often been struck by the absence of the kind of grand strategic debates surrounding cyber that dominated the first nuclear age. Partly that is because there are so many more players than there were during the cold war. Partly it is because the United States is so politically divided. Partly it is because cyberweapons were created by the US intelligence apparatus, instinctively secretive institutions that always err on the side of overclassification and often argue that public discussion of how we might want to use or control these weapons imperils their utility." - via The Perfect Weapon by David E. Sanger
via Rob Knake, writing at the Council on Foreign Relations' online outlet: Foreign Affairs and in the Snapshot section, comes this astute examination of the co-called cyberwarfare space's soft underbelly - power generation. Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt aside: Successful attacks on electrical power generation and equally crucial power distribution capabilites would relegate vast swaths of the population into feudal vassals of regional political power (not too mention the demoralization of those populations). Today's Must Read.
"The digital infrastructure that serves this country is literally under attack,” Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats warned starkly last week. Most commentators took his declaration that “the warning lights are blinking red” as a reference to state-sponsored Russian hackers interfering in the upcoming midterm elections, as they did in the 2016 presidential election. But to focus on election interference may be to fight the last war, fixating on past attacks while missing the most acute vulnerabilities now. There’s reason to think that the real cyberthreat from Russia today is an attack on critical infrastructure in the United States—including one on the power grid that would turn off the lights for millions of Americans." - via Rob Knake, writing at Foreign Affairs
Terrific post at War On The Rocks, with an intriguing theory: The Best Strategy for Cyber-Conflict May Not Be A Cyber-Strategy, via Benjamin Runkle, . There's that pesky 'Cyber' thing again... At any rate, the discussion in this case, revolves around the leveraging of electronic, computational information warfare (perhaps also known as cyberwar) by the previous administration (President Obama). Elected (of course) - as today's Must Read, and watch out for 'them cybers'!
'We will respond in a time and place and manner of our choosing, and when we do so, we will consider a full range of tools, economic, diplomatic, criminal law enforcement, military, and some of those responses may be public, some of them may not be. One analyst derided the vice president’s pronouncements on the topic as “Biden threatening to threaten Russia.”' - via Benjamin Runkle at War On The Rocks
Erudite write-up by Adam Meyers (opining at 38North) in which, Adam details the cyberweapons of mass disruption (in this case the primary weapons discussed are WannaCry, the Wiper Attack and who-can't-forget the electronic Bonnie-and-Clyde aka the 2016 SWIFT attack on the Bank of Bangladesh). Enjoy!
"North Korean offensive cyber operations have been conducted to collect sensitive political and military intelligence information, to lash out at enemies who threaten their beliefs and interests, and most interestingly, to generate revenue." - Adam Meyers writing at 38North)
In what wraps up to be a superbly crafted screed penned by Glenn Greenwald, laboring at The Intercept; in which, the Good Mr. Greewald details the perceived falsehoods swirling about the alleged Russian Intelligence Services hacks of the Burlington Vermont electrical generation utility. Today's Must Read.
News, via Aldrimer, of the Kingdom of Sweden's airspace, and the violation thereof - without aircraft. Todays Must Read and Hat Tip to Firewall Consultants.
RAND Corporation, has published a not-entirely-surprising study targeting what appears to be the highly unsuccessful security postures of organizations under scrutiny. Entitled "The Defender's Dilemma: Charting a Course Toward Cybersecurity". Apparently, the notion of "Come And Take It" is not a particularly successful stratagem in modern electronic warfare...
Citation Libicki, Martin C., Lillian Ablon and Tim Webb. The Defender's Dilemma: Charting a Course Toward Cybersecurity. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2015. http://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR1024. Also available in print form.
If you read anything today focusing on warfare in the electronic realm, read the Lawfare blog's Ashley Deeks posting on this year's Tallinn-based NATO CCDCoE's CyCon 2015 confab. In particular, a Chinese academics' take on cyber jus ad bellum and jus ad bellum criteria to wage war, as targeted by Tallinn 2.0. Fascinating.
News, via Aliya Sternstein, writing at NextGov, details research regarding anti-drone activities fueled by published research. A drone research conundrum, of sorts...
via David Bisson, writing at Tripwire's State of Security blog, comes a particularly dire warning from Keith Alexander, GEN (RET) USA (RET), holder of a Bronze Star and the 16th Director of the United States National Security Agency, focusing on the security bulwarks of the embattled Energy Sector.
Behold, the so-called Lonely Cyberwarrior. A remarkable story conveyed to us via The Daily Beast's prolific Vijai Maheshwari. The story of intestinal fortitude whilst in the presence of Force Majeure certainly is astonishing...
“I compared myself to Joan of Arc, but I hope that I don’t have a violent end as she did.” He laughs nervously. “There’s still so much to be done. This war is only just beginning.” - via The Daily Beasts' inimitable Vijai Maheshwari