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U.S. Tightens Export Controls on Items Used in Surveillance of Private Citizens, other Malicious Cyber Activities
The Commerce Department has released an interim final rule, establishing controls on the export, reexport, or transfer (in-country) of certain items that can be used for surveillance of private citizens or other malicious cyber activities.
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Piracy, Armed Robbery Incidents on the High Seas Decline, but Threats Remain
The first nine months of 2021 saw the lowest numbers of piracy and armed robbery incidents on the high seas since 1994. While the reduction of reported incidents is a welcome, the International Maritime Bureau warns that seafarers must remain vigilant as violence against crew remains high in many areas of the world.
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Growing the U.S. AI Workforce
A new policy brief Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) addresses the need for a clearly defined artificial intelligence education and workforce policy.
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U.S. Leads Global Conference to Combat Ransomware Attacks
The White House is holding a two-day international conference starting Wednesday to combat ransomware computer attacks on business operations across the globe that cost companies, schools and health services an estimated $74 billion in damages last year.
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China’s Belt and Road Initiative: Profits, Not Development
A new study found that, during the pre-Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) era, China and the U.S. were overseas spending rivals. However, China is now outspending the U.S. and other major powers on a more than 2-to-1 basis. Beijing’s lending to low-income and middle-income countries is provided on less generous terms than loans from OECD-DAC and multilateral creditors.
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The Effect of Imports of Neodymium Magnets on U.S. National Security
The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has initiated an investigation to determine the effects on U.S. national security from imports of Neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) permanent magnets.
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Improving Use of Flood Insurance
DHS S&T and partners will study improvements to flood insurance, identifying ways to expand the use of flood insurance to reduce the financial losses suffered by homeowners and creditors in future storms.
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Mandates Give Rise to Booming Black Market for Fake Vaccine Cards
As more organizations demand proof of inoculation against COVID-19, the black market for fake vaccine cards appears to be booming. Legal experts compare phony vaccine cards to counterfeit money or fake drivers’ licenses.
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U.S. Sanctions Russian-Based Cryptocurrency Exchange for Laundering Ransomware Money
A Russian-based cryptocurrency exchange has been sanctioned by the U.S. over its role in facilitating illegal payments from ransomware attacks. U.S. Treasury officials said it was the first sanctions leveled against a cryptocurrency exchange laundering money for cybercriminals.
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Cybercriminals Use Pandemic to Attack Schools and Colleges
From Aug. 14 to Sept. 12, 2021, educational organizations were the target of over 5.8 million malware attacks, or 63% of all such attacks. Ransomware attacks alone impacted 1,681 U.S. schools, colleges and universities in 2020. Globally 44% of educational institutions were targeted by such attacks.
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Detecting, Identifying Small Drones in Urban Environment
DHS has awarded $750K to a Texas company to develop a detection and tracking sensor system that can identify nefarious small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) in an urban environment.
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The Closing of Book Revue and America's Misguided Lockdowns
Book Revue, a 20-yer old cultural and social institution in downtown Huntington on Long Island’s north shore, will be closing its doors in a few days. It is yet another victim of the policy if business lockdowns, which was a misguided and unnecessary response to the Covid. Other countries chose a different, and more effective, path.
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9/11 Prepared Firms for COVID-19 Economic Effects
Companies which experienced the financial impact of 9/11 were more resilient to the economic effects of COVID-19, according to new research.The research is the first of its kind to compare the events of the last eighteen months with 9/11.
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New Program: Hardware-Cybersecurity Education
Many commonly reported cyberattacks focus on computer software vulnerabilities. But what about computer hardware? As complex global supply chains are stressed by the pandemic, risks increase of corporate or state espionage via hardware, such as malicious “trojan” circuits hidden on a motherboard by a shady third-party vendor.
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Cybersecurity education to Help Communities Become More Cyber-Secure
The NSA helps fund programs aiming to develop a community-wide K-12 cybersecurity program, support local industry and government to be more cyber resilient, and help local academic institutions to develop cybersecurity programs for students.
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The long view
Addressing China’s Growing Influence over Latin America’s Mineral Resources
The United States and its partners in the hemisphere must address a major strategic challenge: China’s growing influence over Latin America’s critical and natural mineral resources. Adina Renee Adler and Haley Ryan write that “Allowing a geostrategic competitor like China to wield disproportionate influence over access to critical minerals—or allowing production to become concentrated in a single geographic region—poses a serious risk to the United States and its allies.”
Bad for Computer Security: Employees Returning to the Office
When employees feel they deserve superior technology compared to other employees—and they don’t receive unrestricted access to it—they pose a security risk to their companies, according to a new research.
Identifying and Predicting Insider Threats
Insider threats are one of the top security concerns facing large organizations. Current and former employees, business partners, contractors—anyone with the right level of access to a company’s data—can pose a threat. A new project seeks to detect and predict insider threats.
The "Rock-to-Metal Ratio" of Critical Minerals
A new metric to quantify the amount of waste rock generated by mining for minerals essential to 21st century society has been created by the U.S. Geological Survey and Apple.