||sorina|| One of the main shifts in China's Global Development Initiative is that it should focu son SDGs and it should be implemented via the UN (unlike Belt and Road Initaitive).

https://science.house.gov/hearings/trustworthy-ai-managing-the-risks-of-artificial-intelligence

Could the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change be an approach to a global Cyber Framework Convention? Few thoughts here. Thanks Asoke for the idea! PS I made public comments, so that we could possibly involve others to comment as well in future.

||asokemATdiplomacy.edu|| ||Pavlina|| ||JovanK||

There could be an umbrella related to various digital policy issues (cybercrime at least, if not also LAWS, and some IG topics like human rights). But, it would be additionally complex (if not impossible) to do such a cluster. But, there should be some mechanism that can connect all these dots (and future and emerging - like negotiations on AI).

In cyber, we are through with this, and could move to mitigation already.

This is the same in cyber.

This would be trickier for cyber, as there seems to be nothing as a specific goal discussed so far. How to define it? It could bind states to clarify and agree on (in future) how existing international law applies - ie find the way for it to apply; leaving it to further negotiations on regular basis to clarify bit by bit, through additional Protocols?

Or, should it be related to something quantitatively measurable, like number of attacks or loss, etc? This may be tricky to measure since, unlike global scientific measurements on the environment which can't be hidden by states, here, some aspects about attacks can be hidden by states to ensure deniability.

Can we borrow anything from other disarmament or other peace and security treaties for this mater?

This remains important for cybersecurity as well. Thinking about cybersecurity generally slows down digitalisation (though without it, digitalisation might bring more challenges than benefits).

While environment seems to be at the opposite side of development, cybersecurity can actually be seen as an enabler of development, and might be easier to make countries accept both (thus not striking 'a balance' in essence).

But in practice, it is sort of a balance of investment and pace in digitalisation vs/and cybersecurity, because there are limited funds and thus priorities.

Current OEWG is shaping 'National survey' (proposed by Mexico) which may further turn into a more complex and substantial reporting mechanism.

PoA is proposing a regular review process.

Perhaps combining the two - and asking multistkeholder venues (esp. academia?) to come up with measurement/assessment methodology of the progress (also linked to the concrete goal of the treaty above)?

OEWG and GGE had capacity building as one of the key pillars. Yet, funding was not directly discussed; rather, support to developing countries to be able to implement the agreed norms. This is a solid basis.

There might not need to be specific fund for cybersecurity. Instead, digitalisation funds should be extended/used for this. Perhaps, a more direct link between development aid and cybersecurity can be made. On one hand, it obliges developed countries to not only export digitalisation, but also security. On the other, it obliges developing countries to take both.

Here, it is rather the P5+ that can lead the way, as it is about armament and stability.

Should they have a particular role, by leading by the example? Most state-backed attacks are linked to a handful of countries - how to put the onus on them (and how to make this list without going into a tricky bit on attribution)?

Certainly, developed countries would have greater capacities for offense and defence. But, they would also be more vulnerable since they are more digitalised.

OEWG and GGE already recognised 'emerging threats' clearly, and there is a broad agreement. It could cover still some more threats which are not recognised openly (like exploitation of vulnerabilities). It could bind member states to act in the interests of human safety and international peace.

Madan Oberoi, Interpol's executive director for technology and innovation warned about the potential of cybercrime in the metaverse and said the agency is preparing for dangers posed by the virtual world(s).

Metaverse could potentially amplify the cybercrime challenges already present online while also introducing a host of new ones. Cybercrime might operate differently when augmented reality and virtual reality are involved. Oberoi cautioned

"Some of the crimes may be new to this medium, some of the existing crimes will be enabled by the medium and taken to a new level," Oberoi said.

He underlined other serious concerns, such as child safety and the possibility that virtual reality can make crime in the real world easier.

‘If terror group wants to attack a physical space they may use this space to plan and simulate and launch their exercises before attacking,’ he said.

Law agencies are increasingly interested in the metaverse, with Interpol developing its own virtual environment that will allow police forces around the world to communicate with one another and even participate in immersive training courses. At the same time, Europol recently published its second report about the metaverse named ‘Policing in the metaverse: what law enforcement needs to know’.

Apple Inc lost an appeal in a London court over key technology patents that are used in Apple's devices. The Court of Appeal confirmed the lower court’s previous decision that Optis Cellular Technology LLC can restrict Apple from using the crucial patents for 3G and 4G telecommunications unless Apple commits to fair and reasonable terms of use.

Judge Richard Arnold stated that Apple merely needed to agree to accept a global license over the standard essential patents on terms that a court considered to be fair and reasonable to avoid an injunction on using the patents in England and Wales.

The ruling is the latest in a dispute that has been ongoing since 2019 when Optis accused Apple of infringing eight of its patents on key telecommunications technology through the sale of products, including iPhone and iPad. In contrast, Apple claimed that Optis has been abusing its dominant position.

The legal battle between Apple viruses Optis has already prompted six separate trials and three appellate hearings in Uk alone, with two further Court of Appeal hearings due next year.

Also, the mentioned companies led a legal dispute before a court in the US, where a judge fined Apple $300 million for infringing on Optis' patent rights related to wireless standards. Apple attempted to appeal the decision, but an East Texas court denied its bid for a third trial in May.

UK's telecom regulator chief (Ofcom)said Meta and Microsoft will not be allowed to self-regulate their metaverses in the UK and will be subject to the country's proposed Online Safety Bill. Breach of the online safety legislation, which is yet to be approved, may result in heavy fines of up to 10% of annual global revenues. Furthermore, senior executives of those companies could even face criminal charges in case of extreme violations.

Melanie Dawes, CEO of Ofcom, stated that businesses in the metaverse wouldn't be allowed to self-regulate their virtual worlds and would instead need to comply with the Online Safety Bill in the UK.

The Online Safety Bill is a proposed legislation drafted to prevent the online sharing of harmful content. The law, which is yet to be approved, would require companies to create a set of strict measures to address harmful content. The legislation focuses particularly on protecting children.

The Hive ransomware group has claimed responsibility for a cyberattack against India's largest power company Tata Power. As reported by bleepingcomputer, the threat actor began leaking data allegedly stolen from Tata Power on their leak site after failed ransom negotiations.

According to details shared by security researcher Rakesh Krishnan, the leak contains personally identifiable information (PII), including Aadhaar identity numbers, permanent account numbers (PAN), drivers' license, salary specifics, and engineering drawings.

The incident is said to have occurred on 3 October 2022 and was confirmed by Tata Power; however, the company refused to provide any additional details (about the incident).

Apple filed a lawsuit against medical tech company Masimo Corp in federal court in Delaware, accusing the company of 'copying' its Apple Watch. According to the case, Masimo Corp, W1 smartwatches infringed several Apple Watch patents.

An Apple spokesperson said in a statement that it hoped the suit would 'protect the innovations we advance on behalf of our customers.'

On the other hand, Masimo spokesperson said Apple's suit was an effort to 'divert attention from the litigations brought by Masimo,' and accused Apple of intellectual property theft "instead of competing fairly."

Previously, Masimo, which specializes in health-monitoring devices for medical patients, sued Apple in California federal court in 2020. The company claimed that Apple had stolen its trade secrets and infringed its patents, including measuring heart rate and blood-oxygen levels. Last year, it also asked the US government to halt imports of Apple Watches that violate its patents.

The Computer Emergency Response Team of Ukraine (CERT-UA) reported the spread of phishing emails that target critical infrastructure with Cuba Ransomware.

As explained by CERT-UA Team, phishing emails impersonated the Press Service of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, enticing recipients to click a link. The victims are lured to a third-party website to update the PDF Reader software to read the embedded document. Upon clicking the 'DOWNLOAD' button, victims are infected with malware known as 'ROMCOM RAT.' The operations are linked to the threat actor 'Tropical Scorpius'.

Textus Test

....

TITLE: Iran’s nuclear energy agency’s email got hacked from a foreign country

CONTENT: Iran's atomic energy organization announced on Sunday that an e-mail server belonging to one of its subsidiaries had been hacked from a foreign country and material had been published online.

Black Reward, an Iranian hacker collective, claimed in a statement posted on Twitter that it has made leaked information about Iranian nuclear programs, calling the move a gesture of support for Iranian protesters.

According to Black Reward, the documents released included atomic development contracts and agreements with domestic and foreign partners, management and operational schedules of different parts of the Bushehr power plant, and passports and visas of Iranian and Russian specialists working there.

In a statement made on October 21, Black Reward threatened to reveal hacked data within 24 hours if the government did not free political prisoners and those detained during the uprising.

EXCERPT: An e-mail server belonging to Iran's atomic energy organization was hacked from a foreign country. Black Reward, an Iranian hacker collective, claims it has made leaked information about Iran's nuclear programs public. Documents include atomic development contracts, management and operational schedules of different parts of Bushehr power plant.

TOPIC: Cybercrime, Cyberconflict and warfare

DATE: 23.10.

LINK: https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/irans-atomic-energy-organization-says-e-mail-was-hacked-state-media-says-2022-10-23/

TITLE: Saudi government’s service site becomes a target of a new phishing campaign

CONTENT: Multiple phishing domains imitating Absher, the Saudi government service site, have been set up to supply citizens with fake services and steal their passwords.

CloudSEK cybersecurity researchers made the finding and published an advisory about the threat on Thursday.

Government services in the Saudi region have reportedly recently been a top target for cybercriminals looking to steal user credentials and exploit them in other cyberattacks, according to CloudSEK.

In order to lessen the effects of these assaults, CloudSEK urged government agencies to keep an eye on phishing attempts that target citizens and warn and educate them about the risks, such as by advising them not to click on questionable links.

EXCERPT: Saudi citizens are being targeted by phishing websites that mimic Absher, the Saudi government service site. Cybercriminals are looking to steal user credentials and exploit them in other cyberattacks, researchers say. Government services in the Saudi region have reportedly been a top target for cybercriminals.

LINK: https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/phishing-campaign-saudi-government/

DATE: 21.10.

TOPIC: Cybercrime, Cybersecurity, Cyberconflict and warfare

Ian Peter's pre-history of the Internet

Idea for Jovan's book

This text sent by ||sorina|| discusses the way how machines can simulate common sense.

It is rather realistic because it starts with assumption that AI cannot replace human consciousness, but it can 'simulate' it by observing and measuring.

It is based on 'heuristic', philosophical concept, that deals with the way how we make decisions.

Practically speaking, AI is learning from experience by human evaluation of AI decisions and 're-inforced' learning. In that sense, what we do with the text is methodologically similar: we ask AI to provide us with drafts and we react to it based on our intelligence and knowledge.

||Jovan||

It is a good point. We may not simulate human counsciousness but we can observe it.

What motivates human actions?

AGENT works on reinforced learning as well.

We should follow AGENT development. It is also interesting for diplomacy since diplomat is AGENT.

It is an important part of 'common sense'

The Europol Innovation Lab has published its second report under its Observatory function, ‘Policing in the metaverse: what law enforcement needs to know’. The reports are intended to aid in the understanding, adaptation, and planning of law enforcement agencies for policing in the metaverse.

Based on in-depth consultations with law enforcement experts, industry and academia, the report provides a detailed overview of the potential for criminal activities within the metaverse, recommendations for tackling crime (within the metaverse) alongside the opportunities and best practices for building a police presence online.

Internet connectivity was on 19 October impacted after a major cable cut in the south of France, affecting subsea cable connectivity to Europe, Asia, the United States and potentially other parts of the world. As a result, customers may see packet loss or latency for websites and applications which cross these impacted routes. Cloud security company Zscaler reports that they made routing adjustments to reduce the impact.

According to Zscaler, three French links - from Marseille-Lyon, Marseille-Milano, and Marseille-Barcelona- were cut.

While the repair crews reached the spots quickly, they had to wait for the police to collect evidence. As of now, the issue has been resolved, and all internet connectivity should resume usually.

Coincidently, the undersea cable that connects the Shetland Islands to the Scottish mainland has reportedly also suffered damage, according to the BBC. Since cables between the Faroe Islands and Shetland were also recently damaged, this is the second incidence involving marine cables in that area in a short period.

TITLE: Ivanti’s Ransomware Index Report Q2–Q3 2022: Ransomware leads to physical war

CONTENT: Since 2019, ransomware has expanded by 466%, and it is increasingly being utilized as a precursor to actual combat.

The findings came from Ivanti's Ransomware Index Report Q2-Q3 2022, which the company released earlier today to Infosecurity.

The data also suggests that ransomware groups are becoming more sophisticated and widespread, with 35 vulnerabilities becoming related with ransomware in the first three quarters of 2022 and 159 trending active exploits. Based on the report, 47.4% of ransomware vulnerabilities threaten healthcare systems, 31.6% damage energy systems, and 21.1% affect key manufacturing.

The Ivanti research claims that hostile nations are increasingly using state-sponsored threat groups to infiltrate, destabilize, and disrupt operations in their target countries. As shown in the recent Russia-Ukraine war, ransomware is being utilized as a precursor to physical warfare in many of these operations.

Ivanti executive also noted that IT and security teams need to work on employing automation technology that can not only correlate data from disparate sources, but also quantify risk, provide early warning of weaponization, predict assaults, and prioritize remedial actions.

TOPIC: Cyberconflict and warfare, Cybercrime, Critical infrastructure

DATE: 20.10.

LINK: https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/ransomware-precursor-to-physical/

EXCERPT: Ivanti's Ransomware Index Report Q2-Q3 2022 states that ransomware is being utilized as a precursor to physical warfare. The report shows percentage of ransomware expansion since 2019, as well as ransomware vulnerabilities that threaten some of the most critical infrastructure. It is suggested that IT and security teams work on quantifying risk, providing early warning of weaponization, predicting assaults, and prioritizing remedial actions.

Interpol unveiled the first-ever 'metaverse' designed for law enforcement worldwide at its ongoing 90th General Assembly in Delhi. The metaverse platform is envisioned to aid police forces worldwide to interact with other officers and even take 'immersive training courses in forensic investigation and other policing capabilities'. Likewise, the platform allows users to visit virtual Interpol headquarters in Lyon, France.

'The metaverse has the potential to transform every aspect of our daily lives with enormous implications for law enforcement,' Madan Oberoi, Interpol's Executive Director of Technology and Innovation, said in a statement.

'But in order for police to understand the metaverse, we need to experience it'., added Oberoi

In addition, Interpol announced the formation of a metaverse expert group to voice law enforcement's concerns worldwide and guaranteed that the new virtual world was safe by design.

||VladaR||, ||JovanK||

Cyber Diplomacy document by the Atlantic Council

The Ajman Police in Dubai has become the first law enforcement organization in the world to provide metaverse services. The Ajman Police stated that its metaverse initiative is the first of its kind for the United Arab Emirates and marks the Ajman government's entry into the metaverse.

According to the Police force, citizens will be able to interact with police officials in the metaverse by wearing Virtual Reality (VR) headsets, smartphones, tablets, laptops or desktop computers.

Lieutenant Colonel Mohammed bin Abdullah Abu Shehab, head of the Services Development Team, stated, 'the project came within Ajman Police's efforts to strengthen cooperation with its customers and involve them in the design and development of services. Metaverse comes within the framework of facilitating the meeting between customers through VR, which brings them together with police officers without the need for a personal presence at the police station.'

Russia's ministry of industry and trade recommended that industrial enterprises stop using Zoom, Skype, and WhatsApp for official purposes and choose Russian systems as an alternative.

As Kommersant reports, the ministry explained its decision 'as the requirement to comply with the government's requirements and strengthen information security measures.'

Another high-ranking Russian official had made a similar request. A 'full ban on WhatsApp use for official purposes by the Russian state and municipal employees' employees' was demanded by Anton Gorelkin, deputy chairman of the information policy committee of the Russian parliament.

The head of the EU's financial services has called US lawmakers to create new regulations to control the cryptocurrency market, stressing that if digital assets remain unregulated, it might threaten financial stability.

Mairead McGuinness, the European Commission's financial services commissioner, told the Financial Times in a recent interview that they need to look at global regulation of cryptocurrencies.

'We do need to see other players also legislating … perhaps differently, but with the same objective. … We need to look at the global regulation of crypto. There would be a lot of concern at a European level as to [what would happen] if crypto were not to be regulated.' warning digital assets could pose a threat to financial stability if left to grow unregulated. Stated McGuinness

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has published her ‘2022 State of the Union Letter of Intent’, underpinning the Metaverse as an important digital opportunity and trend while also setting out plans for potential regulations of the Metaverse.

The president acknowledges that Europe must adapt to the digital age and added that the EU ‘will continue looking at new digital opportunities and trends, such as the metaverse’. However, the letter provides little specifics on EU actions.

The United Kingdom's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) rejected Meta's (formerly known as Facebook) appeal and ordered the company to sell the animated-images platform Giphy. CMA's decision cited that taking over Giphy was harmful to the competition.

The decision came after CMA found that Meta's purchase of Giphy could allow Meta to limit other social media platforms' access to GIFs, making those sites less attractive to users and less competitive. CMA also ruled that such a deal removed Giphy' as a potential challenger in the UK display advertising market, preventing UK businesses from benefiting from innovation in this market.'

Previously, in November, the CMA ordered Meta to sell Giphy after finding it would raise competition concerns. Meta tried to appeal the decision. However, in June, a court ruled against the company's appeal, promoting the final decision to the CMA.

The final decision by CMA ruled the deal would enable Meta to further increase its market power.

The US International Trade Commission (USITC) revealed it would open investigations into divisions of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), Samsung Electronics and Qualcomm on allegations of patent infringement. USITC stated that it would look into allegations made by the complainant that parts and mobile devices imported into the US violated its semiconductors and integrated circuits patents.

According to the USITC's investigation, the patent infringement claims cover chips manufactured by Samsung using its 14nm and smaller process nodes and by TSMC using its 16nm and smaller process nodes. The investigation will also include the aforementioned processors as well as mobile devices like smartphones, tablets, and smartwatches. In contrast, Qualcomm has been named in a separate patent infringement filed by the same company.

German cybersecurity chief Arne Schönbohm was fired over alleged ties with Russian security services. According to media reports, German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser sacked the head of the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) due to recent media reports of his ties with Russia and due to the damaged public trust in Schönbohm's leadership.

According to reports in German media, Schönbohm was tied to Russia through his role in the Cyber Security Council of Germany. In 2012, Schönbohm co-founded the organization, which advises the private and public sectors on cybersecurity issues. However, the organization came under fire over the connection of one of its members to the Kremlin.

The layoff was initially reported by the German news publication Spiegel, and was later confirmed by a representative for the Interior Ministry.

'The background to this is not least the allegations, which are well known and widely discussed in the media, and which have permanently damaged the necessary public confidence in the neutrality and impartiality of the conduct of his office as president of Germany's most important cybersecurity authority,' the spokesperson said.

The departure of Schoenbohm will be followed by an investigation from Germany's Interior Ministry over the allegations in question.

||dusandATdiplomacy.edu|| Ovo je gruap organizacija koje odlicnom poznajem. Oni prave kontekst za SSO projekat. Upozoravaju na centralizovani digital ID.

Title: Policy Speech by Prime Minister Kishida at the 210th Session of the Diet

TITLE: Hong Kong’s government org’s network compromised by hackers for a year

CONTENT: Cyberattacks on government institutions in Hong Kong by the China-linked espionage actor APT41 (also known as Winnti), which compromised them, went unnoticed for up to a year in certain cases, have been discovered by Symantec researchers.

The threat actor has been employing a piece of customized malware known as Spyder Loader that has previously been linked to the organization.

The newly detected Hong Kong activity appears to be a component of the same operation, according to Symantec's research, and the targets of Winnti are local governments in the special administrative area.

Although Symantec was unable to recover the full malware, it appears that the objective of APT41's most recent effort was to gather intelligence from significant Hong Kong institutions.

EXCERPT: Symantec has discovered a year long China-linked cyberattacks, coming from espionage actor known as Winnti. They have been compromising government institutions in Hong Kong. The full malware was not yet found, but their most recent object is local governments special administrative area.

LINK: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/hackers-compromised-hong-kong-govt-orgs-network-for-a-year/

DATE: 18.10.

TOPIC: Cybercrime, Cyberconflict and warfare

A policy paper released by the Shanghai city government on 8 July 2022 outlined its developmental plan to cultivate a metaverse industry worth 350 billion yuan ($52 billion) by the end of 2025.

The development action plan refers to the Metaverse as a new generation of information technology integration and innovation that would drive the growth of the internet toward Web3. The innovation plan focuses on promoting the development of Metaverse-related industries and helping Beijing build a benchmark city for the digital economy.

The action plan aims at 'strengthening cutting-edge technological breakthroughs,' focusing on virtual reality headsets, chips, cloud computing and 5G technology.

TITLE: Bulgarian government attacked with DDoS by pro-Russian hackers

CONTENT: Over the weekend, the Bulgarian government was subject to a wave of DDoS attacks, with Russia being the main suspect, according to sources.

According to various local reports, traffic flooded the websites of the Bulgarian President, the National Revenue Agency, and the departments of internal affairs, defense, and justice.

The campaign on October 15 also targeted telecom businesses, airports, banks, and a few media outlets, Sofia Globe reported.

The suspects were recognized as being from the Russian city of Magnitogorsk by the authorities, according to Borislav Sarafov, the director of Bulgaria's National Investigation Service.

However, according to some reports, the notorious Russian cybercrime group Killnet had already taken responsibility for the said DDoS attack.

LINK: https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/prorussia-hackers-ddos-bulgarian/

DATE: 18.10.

TOPIC: Cyberconflict and warfare, cybercrime

EXCERPT: The Bulgarian government was subject to a wave of DDoS attacks, with Russia being the main suspect. Traffic flooded the websites of the Bulgarian President, National Revenue Agency, and departments of internal affairs, defense, and justice. Some reports claim Russian cybercrime group Killnet had already taken responsibility for the attack.

Title: Dubai metaverse strategy

The European Parliamentary Research Service ('EPRS') published, on 24 June 2022, its briefing, titled 'Metaverse: Opportunities, Risks and Policy Implications'. While the metaverse's exact scope and impact on society are still unknown, it can already be seen that it will open up a range of opportunities and risks in a variety of policy areas.

The briefing, in particular, summarizes studies on the possible effects of metaverse platforms on several policy concerns, including competition, data protection, liability, financial transactions, cybersecurity, health, and accessibility and inclusiveness.

A Moscow court on Tuesday fined US giant Amazon.com Inc a total of 41 million roubles ($16,150), Interfax reported.

Interfax said the court ruled that Amazon had failed to delete material that 'propagandises suicide', which is illegal under Russian law.

It is the first such fine imposed on Amazon, although other US-based giants have come under pressure in Russia in recent months, with Meta being labelled as an 'extremist' organization and Google and Apple receiving fines.

Horizon Worlds, Meta’s flagship metaverse platform, is failing to meet internal performance expectations, The Wall Street Journal reported, which reviewed internal company documents. The Journal said the records showed the user base had been progressively falling since the spring, and many Horizon users have left after the first month on the platform.

Meta had set a target of 500,000 monthly active users but recently reduced it to 280,000; at this time, there are fewer than 200,000.

Horizon’s services include several interactive virtual spaces or worlds letting users socialize, play and have fun. Internal statistics have shown that only 9% of developed worlds have more than 50 visitors, while many are never visited.

TITLE: Colombian data leak exposes personal information of Australian Federal Police

CONTENT: Following the release of data taken from the Colombian government by hackers, the identities of covert agents for the Australian Federal Police (AFP) have been made public.

More than five terabytes of sensitive information, including emails, documents, and strategies AFP agents were employing to prevent drug cartels from conducting business in Australia, were leaked by the hacktivist collective Guacamaya.

Details exposed this way come from 35 AFP operations, some of them still active, and also contain surveillance reports from agents, phone tap recordings, and salary data for Colombian personnel.

LINK: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/australian-police-secret-agents-exposed-in-colombian-data-leak/

DATE: 14.10.

TOPIC: Cyberconflict and warfare, Cybercrime

EXCERPT: The identities of covert agents for the Australian Federal Police (AFP) have been made public. This follows the release of data taken from the Colombian government by hackers. More than five terabytes of sensitive information were leaked by the hacktivist collective Guacamaya.

The Microsoft Threat Intelligence Center (MSTIC) reports that it has tracked new ransomware dubbed Prestige that is being used to target transportation and logistics organizations in Ukraine and Poland. The latest ransomware campaign has not been attributed to any known threat actor.

However, MSTIC added that 'the activity shares victimology with recent Russian state-aligned activity, specifically on affected geographies and countries, and overlaps with previous victims of the FoxBlade malware (also known as HermeticWiper)'.

According to MSTIC, deployment of Prestige ransomware has not been previously recorded, and its activity was not connected to any of the 94 currently active ransomware activity groups that Microsoft tracks.

The method of initial access remains unknown, with Microsoft noting that the threat actor had already obtained privileged access to the compromised environment to deploy the ransomware using three different methods.

Microsoft reported observing three different methods for deploying the ransomware. Two involved attackers uploaded the payload to an admin-shared folder and then activated it on network systems using remote code tools to trigger them on victim systems. A third involved the payload being added to the Active Directory Domain Controller and deployed across networks.

TITLE: Education sector recorded a 44% increase in cyberattacks since last year

CONTENT: According to Check Point's 2022 Mid-Year Report, the education sector saw a 44% increase in cyberattacks from 2021 to 2022, with an average of 2297 attacks against organizations every week.

The research illustrates that a factor in the attraction is the enormous amount of personal information that threat actors can amass by picking on businesses in this industry.

According to the monthly threat index produced by the research team, the education sector will be most negatively affected in 2022. It is obvious that cybercriminals are finding success with these operations, and schools and colleges should be planning for a rise in the frequency of these attacks.

In contrast to most businesses, which only have employees, academic institutions also have students. This makes the sector's networks much larger, more accessible, and harder to secure.

TOPIC: Cyberconflict and warfare, Cybercrime, Cybersecurity

LINK: https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/education-experienced-44-increase/

DATE: 14.10.

EXCERPT: The education sector saw a 44% increase in cyberattacks from 2021 to 2022, with an average of 2297 attacks against organizations every week. Cybercriminals are finding success with these operations, and schools and colleges should be planning for a rise in the frequency of these attacks.

TITLE: Microsoft discovers new novel ransomware attack on Ukraine and Poland

CONTENT: According to a blog post by Microsoft on Friday, a recently identified hacker group has used a novel kind of ransomware to assault logistics and transportation firms in Poland and Ukraine.

In less than an hour on Tuesday, the attackers targeted a variety of computers, according to Microsoft, which added that it had not yet been able to connect the attacks to any known group.

Researchers discovered that the cyberattacks, however, closely resembled past assaults by a cyber team connected to the Russian government that had affected Ukrainian government services.

LINK: https://www.reuters.com/technology/microsoft-says-ukraine-poland-targetted-with-novel-ransomware-attack-2022-10-14/

TOPIC: Cyberconflict and warfare, Cybercrime

EXCERPT: A hacker group has used a novel kind of ransomware to attack logistics and transportation firms in Poland and Ukraine. In less than an hour on Tuesday, the attackers targeted a variety of computers. Microsoft has not yet been able to connect the attacks to any known group.

DATE: 15.10.

||dusandATdiplomacy.edu|| Ovde se 'identity' koristi u sirem znacenju, ali ce to postati veliko politicko i ekonomsko pitanje. Borrell u ovom govoru kaze 'It is the indetity, stupid'.

It is too generic statement. There are many other countries with good institutions.

This is a problem. European Academy should have some distance from Brussels in order to understand the rest of the world. Understanding EU machinery is not enough.

||Jovan||

compliance power of Google.

what is 'homogenisation'?

In the digital realm, it is mainly the US technology (social platform, semi-conductors, data farms, etc.).

Does the Economist accept digital sovereignty as 'given'?

What do we know about this act?

||sorina||||VladaR||

It will be interesting to learn about this attempt. It was probably one of the reasons for the failure of the Soviet Union.

to check this book.

||sorina|| Maybe to quote it somewhere?

||sorina|| OECD wants also to 'strenghten African policy makers voices' (but not in digital field).

to introduce this index into our statistics.

Open Loop project of Meta/Facebook on linking policymakers and technology companies.

||sorina||