How to Detect a Man-Made Biothreat | We’re Not Ready for an Asteroid Threat | When Everything Becomes TikTok, and more

What Happens When Everything Becomes TikTok  (Arthur Holland Michel, The Atlantic)
Even the most advanced automated systems can’t catch every bit of extreme content.

Russia Reactivates Its Trolls and Bots Ahead of Tuesday’s Midterms  (Steven Lee Myers, New York Times)
Researchers have identified a series of Russian information operations to influence American elections and, perhaps, erode support for Ukraine.

Antisemitism Decried Four Years After Pa. Synagogue Attack (Peter Smith, AP)
In what has become an annual ritual, Pittsburgh’s Jewish community Thursday honored the memory of the 11 Jews who were murdered on this date in the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history. For many community leaders, their grief is mixed with dismay over the continued and growing incidents of antisemitism in the United States and beyond. That included the widely publicized comments of Ye, the rap superstar formerly known as Kanye West, who voiced antisemitic stereotypes in interviews and social media, including a tweet that he would soon go “death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE.” “It is horribly sad that this week as our community tries to remember and heal, we are retraumatized with antisemitism once again making the headlines,” said a statement from Laura Cherner, director of the Community Relations Council of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh. “It is horrifying to see someone with such large platform casually espouse antisemitic conspiracy theories with such conviction and little regard for the violent impact his words may have,” she added.

F.B.I. Locates Suspect After Warning of Security Threat at New Jersey Synagogues  (Tracey Tully and Shlomo Schorr, New York Times)
Hours after issuing a rare warning about a security risk at New Jersey synagogues, the Federal Bureau of Investigation identified a man who holds “radical extremist views,” and who they say was the source of the threat, a federal official told faith leaders Friday morning. It was not clear if a suspect was in custody, but officials said the threat had been “mitigated.” “He no longer poses a threat to the community at this time,” James E. Dennehy, the special agent in charge of the F.B.I.’s Newark office, said during a morning conference call with state and federal law enforcement officials and more than 500 Jewish leaders. Mr. Dennehy said investigators believed that the man, who is from New Jersey, was acting alone, but they are continuing to pursue leads about people he might have been in contact with. The man was not publicly identified, and officials offered no additional information about whether he had been charged with a crime. He was located Thursday night, officials said, and questioned for a “few hours.” “He expressed radical, extremist views and ideology, as well as an extreme amount of hate against the Jewish community,” Mr. Dennehy said. Incidents of harassment and violence against Jews and Jewish institutions have increased nationwide and have only intensified as celebrities like the rapper Kanye West, who goes by the name Ye, and the basketball player Kyrie Irving, have come under fire for antisemitic posts on social media.

How to Detect a Man-Made Biothreat (Emily Mullin, Wired)
The US government is funding tech to determine whether genetic alterations in a virus or pest are an evolutionary quirk—or a lab-engineered danger.

Multisector Cooperation Against Terrorism  (INTERPOL)
The devastating impact of chemical weapons and explosives used in acts of terrorism continues to affect civilian populations and is well known for its destructive and long-term harm.
Last year over 1,000 improvised explosive device (IED) attacks were conducted by non-state actors, injuring over 7,150 people in more than 40 countries. Many attacks come from chemicals that criminals acquired through weak points in the supply chain – from manufacturing to storage and retail– and made into weapons.
To counter this threat, some 220 chemical security practitioners from more than 70 countries met at INTERPOL’s 3rd Global Congress on Chemical Security and Emerging Threats (25-27 October) to find ways of reducing vulnerabilities by enhancing multisector cooperation and collaboration.
With a focus on acquisition, transportation, physical and cyber security of chemical materials, the meeting highlighted a range of security issues, such as detecting cross-border movements of regulated material and implementing regulatory frameworks.

NASA Asteroid Threat Practice Drill Shows We’re Not Ready  (Matt Brady, Scientific American)
A trial of how government, NASA and local officials would deal with a space rock headed toward Earth revealed gaps in the plans