Tuesday, May 19, 2020


A mild warning: Don’t mess with our infrastructure.
Israel behind cyberattack that caused ‘total disarray’ at Iran port – report
Israel carried out a recent sophisticated cyberattack on an Iranian port facility, causing widespread chaos, apparently in retaliation for an attempt by Tehran to target Israel’s water infrastructure, the Washington Post reported Monday.
The report, citing foreign and US officials, said Israel was likely behind the hack that brought the “bustling Shahid Rajaee port terminal to an abrupt and inexplicable halt” on May 9.
Computers that regulate the flow of vessels, trucks and goods all crashed at once, creating massive backups on waterways and roads leading to the facility,” the Post reported, adding that it had seen satellite photos showing miles-long traffic jams leading to the port and ships still waiting to offload several days later.
The response appeared to indicate that Israel has adopted a “tit-for-tat” strategy in responding to Iranian cyber warfare, a tactic already used by the Israeli military with physical, or kinetic, attacks, this official said.




Does no one check their work? Unprotected by default?
Over 190 Law Firms Affected by Advanced Data Leak That Exposed Over 10,000 Legal Documents
A leading UK software company exposed personal information belonging to over 190 law firms through an unsecured online database. TurgenSec security firm discovered the breach but could not immediately identify the owner of the online database and therefore contacted the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). Following the Responsible Disclosure Policy, the firm contacted the affected law firms who confirmed the data leak came from legal documents hosted by Laserform Hub owned by Advanced Computer Software Group Limited. The database was accessible online to anybody with a browser and internet connection. Advanced claimed the details exposed were largely of public records and resorted not to report the leak.




Interesting infographic promoting a masters program.
A Look at IoT Security and Potential Issues




Worth changing the constitution.
German intelligence can't spy on foreigners outside Germany
Germany's Constitutional Court ruled on Tuesday that monitoring the internet traffic of foreign nationals abroad by the BND intelligence agency partly breaches the constitution.




A tip worth following…
AI and Cybersecurity
Ben Buchanan has written "A National Security Research Agenda for Cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence." It's really good – well worth reading.




Should be educational to watch.
Booz Allen Hamilton wins massive Pentagon artificial intelligence contract
Under the contract award, announced by the General Services Administration and the JAIC on May 18, Booz Allen Hamilton will provide a “wide mix of technical services and products” to support the JAIC, a DoD entity dedicated to advancing the use of artificial intelligence across the department.
The contracting giant will provide the JAIC with “data labeling, data management, data conditioning, AI product development, and the transition of AI products into new and existing fielded programs,” according to the GSA news release.
The delivered AI products will leverage the power of DoD data to enable a transformational shift across the Department that will give the U.S. a definitive information advantage to prepare for future warfare operations,” the release said.




Worth scanning.
VB Special Issue: AI and surveillance in the age of coronavirus
In this issue, we focus on one of the most immediate needs: finding the balance between safety and freedom.
We ponder this tension through the lens of the technologies that are involved in contact tracing and quarantine tracking and enforcement. We discuss the methods and technologies involved, like smartphone surveillance, thermal scanning, drones, big data, and facial recognition, and how and where they’re being used around the world. And we unpack the battle in Congress over data privacy laws and how to avoid the rise of permanent new surveillance measures. We dig deep into the situation unfolding in France, where all these issues are coalescing.




So, when I open the refrigerator it hands me a beer without asking? Cool!
Neural Networks And Machine Learning Are Powering A New Era Of Perceptive Intelligence
A new generation — indeed, ecosystem — of devices, will be driven by interfaces that perceive your wants and needs. Welcome to the future of IoT and perceptive intelligence, where user interaction is optional and contextual awareness is machine learning enabled. When devices transition from collecting and transferring information to using that information intelligently on their own, computing has become ambient.
Although based on some level of human interaction, ambient computing doesn’t require active participation. Artificial intelligence and deep learning can now power entire integrated ecosystems of devices to learn about users, their environments and their preferences, and then adjust accordingly to provide the optimal response or action. This kind of perceptive intelligence is enabled by sensors and vision and is embedded in our living and working spaces in a way that allows its use without being fully aware that we are doing so.



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