Security News
UK intelligence agency, GCHQ, boss Jeremy Fleming says China is "Learning lessons" from the war in Ukraine and could make use of a centralized digital currency to partly get around the type of sanctions being imposed on Putin's Russia. The career MI5 officer, who replaced Robert Hannigan in 2017, is speaking to the Royal United Services Institute think tank later today to spell out what his organization conceives of as a technological threat posed by China.
Russian telecom watchdog Roskomnadzor demanded explanations today from Apple regarding the removal of all VK apps, including the app for the country's largest social network VKontakte, from its App Store on Monday. Two of the apps removed from the Apple Store, the VKontakte social network application and the Mail.ru mail app, are included on the Russian Ministry of Digital Development's list of apps with mandatory pre-installation on mobile devices in Russia.
Meta Platforms on Tuesday disclosed it took steps to dismantle two covert influence operations originating from China and Russia for engaging in coordinated inauthentic behavior so as to manipulate public debate. The sophisticated Russian activity, which commenced in May 2022, impersonated mainstream European news outlets like Der Spiegel, The Guardian, and Bild, not to mention build credibility by creating fake accounts across several platforms to amplify pro-Russian narratives.
The Ukrainian government on Monday warned of "Massive cyberattacks" by Russia targeting critical infrastructure facilities located in the country and that of its allies. The attacks are said to be targeting the energy sector, the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine said.
Someone is flooding Cobalt Strike servers operated by former members of the Conti ransomware gang with anti-Russian messages to disrupt their activity. The operators of Conti ransomware completed turning off their internal infrastructure in May this year but its members have dispersed to other ransomware gangs.
Russia's internet watchdog Roskomnadzor is developing a neural network that will use artificial intelligence to scan websites for prohibited information. Examples of information targeted by Oculus include homosexuality "Propaganda," instructions on manufacturing weapons or drugs, and misinformation that discredits official state and army sources.
Microsoft on Monday revealed it took steps to disrupt phishing operations undertaken by a "Highly persistent threat actor" whose objectives align closely with Russian state interests. "SEABORGIUM intrusions have also been linked to hack-and-leak campaigns, where stolen and leaked data is used to shape narratives in targeted countries," Microsoft's threat hunting teams said.
Russia's Shuckworm cyber group launching ongoing attacks on Ukraine. The Russia-linked cyber group Shuckworm is continuing to target Ukrainian organizations with infostealing malware.
Apple's internet traffic took an unwelcome detour through Russian networking equipment for about twelve hours between July 26 and July 27. In a write-up for MANRS, a public interest group that looks after internet routing, Internet Society senior internet technology manager Aftab Siddiqui said that Russia's Rostelecom started announcing routes for part of Apple's network on Tuesday, a practice referred to as BGP hijacking.
Iran's Communications Ministry joined in a pledge with Russian state-owned defence and technology conglomerate Rostec to explore future collaboration in e-government, information security, and other areas. News of the collaboration came in a statement published on Friday by Iran's Information Technology Organization - a government agency charged with developing policy related to data networks and digital services.