• Intelligence Agencies Accuse Iran, Russia of Trying to Use Voter Registration Data to Sow Chaos Ahead of US Election

    By Jeff Seldin

    U.S. intelligence agencies are accusing Iran and Russia of trying to use voter registration data in “desperate attempts” to sow chaos and confusion ahead of the November 3 U.S. presidential election. In a hastily called news conference late Wednesday, Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe said that “We have confirmed that some voter registration information has been obtained by Iran, and separately, by Russia,” he said, adding both countries “have taken specific actions to influence public opinion relating to our elections.” 

  • Russian Propaganda Hits Its Mark

    Given the size and scope of the Russian propaganda campaign that targeted the U.S. electorate in 2016, it is critical to understand both the impact of that campaign and the mechanisms that can reduce the impact of future campaigns, says a new RAND report.

  • The Violent Extremist Lifecycle: Lessons from Northern Ireland

    A new guide, released by CREST, draws on a reanalysis of interview data from the 1980s and 1990s that explored the lifecycle phases among loyalist and republican paramilitaries from across Northern Ireland. It offers twelve lessons that are relevant not only to those working within the Northern Ireland context today but also to those working to reduce the threat from violent extremists elsewhere.

  • People Want Data Privacy but Don’t Always Know What They’re Getting

    By Gabriel Kaptchuk, Elissa M. Redmiles, and Rachel Cummings

    Debates around privacy might seem simple: Something is private or it’s not. However, the technology that provides digital privacy is anything but simple. Our data privacy research shows that people’s hesitancy to share their data stems in part from not knowing who would have access to it and how organizations that collect data keep it private. We’ve also found that when people are aware of data privacy technologies, they might not get what they expect.

  • Adversaries May Launch Efforts to Undermine Americans’ “Confidence in the Integrity of the Electoral Process”: CISA

    “We remain confident that no foreign cyber actor can change your vote, and we still believe that it would be incredibly difficult for them to change the outcome of an election at the national level. But that doesn’t mean various actors won’t try to introduce chaos in our elections and make sensational claims that overstate their capabilities. In fact, the days and weeks just before and after Election Day is the perfect time for our adversaries to launch efforts intended to undermine your confidence in the integrity of the electoral process”: Christopher Krebs, director of CISA.

  • Kathleen Hall Jamieson on the 2020 Election

    Professor Kathleen Hall Jamieson discusses what we learned from the election four years ago plus how journalists can responsibly share hacked content and what role the public at large can play. She says that in some ways, the country is better prepared today than during the 2016 election cycle, which was fraught with cybertrolls, hacked emails, and leaked content. In other ways, the United States hasn’t learned much from that experience.

  • Details of Russia’s Cyberattacks against Olympic, Paralympic Games Revealed

    The U.K. On Monday (19 October) exposed malicious cyberactivity from Russia’s GRU military intelligence service against organizations involved in the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games before they were postponed. The U.K. National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) said that the incident was intended to sabotage the running of the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, as the malware was designed to wipe data from and disable computers and networks.

  • Proposed Student Visa Policy Could Hinder U.S. Competitiveness

    By David L. Di Maria

    In an effort to crack down on international students and scholars who overstay their visas, the administration is seeking to implement a new set of rules that would make it more difficult for them to remain in the U.S. One of the rules requires foreign students to leave the United States after two or four years, regardless of whether they have completed they degree or research work. The rule comes with a steep price tag. It would also undermine America’s interest in attracting talent from abroad and, ironically, it would do little to actually curtail the problem of visa overstays that it purports to solve.

  • One in Six Historic Resources in Colorado Is in a Floodplain

    Colorado has lost several of its important historic landmarks to disasters. The 2013 floods, for instance, destroyed a WPA-era shelter in Lyons and severely damaged the town’s historic library. A new study reaches a sobering conclusion, that one in six historic resources in Colorado is at risk from a flood disaster, yet few communities proactively plan for their protection.

  • Facebook Ran Recruitment Ads for Militia Groups

    A new report shows that Facebook for years allowed militia groups to recruit new members via paid advertisements on the platform. The review — which followed news of the plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, which played out on Facebook and other social media — also found more than 50 militia pages and groups that are still active on Facebook.

  • Victims of Terror Attacks Reject US Deal to Delist Sudan

    By Nabeel Biajo

    One of the attorneys representing victims of the 1998 terror attacks on U.S. embassies in East Africa and their families says the majority of his clients reject the deal that would result in President Donald Trump removing Sudan from the U.S. State Sponsors of Terrorism list.

  • The Case That Could Topple the Gun Industry’s Special Legal Protections

    By Champe Barton

    An opinion handed down in a Pennsylvania appeals court threatens a law that gunmakers have long used as a shield against wrongful-death suits. The court’s opinion quashes an attempt by the Illinois-based gun manufacturer Springfield Armory to dismiss a suit brought by the family of a Pennsylvania teenager killed with one of its guns.

  • French Mosque Closed as Part of a Crackdown on Islamist Extremists

    The French minister of the interior, Gérald Darmanin, announced the closure of the Pantin mosque in Seine-Saint-Denis. Darmanin said the closure was a response to the beheading Friday of Samuel Paty, a history and geography professor, near the college of Conflans-saint-Honorine where he was a teacher. Paty, teaching a course on the freedom of expression, showed caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed in class. A Muslin student complained to his parents, and the parents persuaded a preacher to issue a “fatwa” calling for the killing of Paty.

  • Man Denied German Citizenship for Refusing to Shake Woman's Hand

    The application of a Lebanese doctor for German citizenship was denied after he refused to shake a woman’s hand. The doctor passed the German naturalization test, but refused to shake hands with the official – a woman — who handed him his citizenship certificate. The court ruled that a refusal to shake a woman’s hand indicates that the man rejected “integration into German living conditions.”

  • Facebook Users Spread Russian Propaganda Less Often When They Know Its Source

    Russian propaganda is hitting its mark on social media—generating strong partisan reactions that may help intensify political divisions—but Facebook users are less apt to press the “like” button on content when they learn that it is part of a foreign propaganda campaign, according to a new report.